Catch Me If You Can
by RomanticDramadyGirl
Summary: She’s sassy, she’s classy, and she’s a girl who dresses like a boy. Need I say more? Also a little bit of action, some drama, and some general. Chapter Ten: Wow! There IS a chapter ten!
1. Chapter One: A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing…

**Title: **_Catch Me If You Can_

**Summary:** She's sassy, she's classy (well, not really: she spits on Jack's shoe!), and she's a girl who dresses like a boy. Need I say more?

**Chapter One: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing… or A Girl in Boy's Clothing?**

"Hey… do youse heah that?" Jack Kelly asked, looking around as the sound of police whistles and police horses approached rapidly. The other newsies looked up, some in interest and some, well… uninterestedly, as a young girl rounded the corner and sprinted in their direction.

Looking over her shoulder to see if the police were still following her, she didn't notice the group of boys in front of her until it was too late. Luckily, Jack reached out and caught her by the arms just before she ran into him.

"You've… gotta… help me…" she muttered, trying to catch her breath. "Police… chasing… didn't do anything…" She shook her head, trying harder to catch her breath.

"Hide 'er, boys!" Jack exclaimed, pushing her behind his back just as the group of about fiver policemen rounded the corner the girl had just appeared at. The other newsies quickly pushed her into the center of the crowd, trying to make her blend in with the crowd.

"Did any of you boys happen to see a girl run this way?" the officer at the front, obviously the leader, as, eyeing Jack suspiciously. "She was about this high-" He held his hand about five and a half feet (the same height the girl was) above the ground. "With brown hair, wearing boys clothes."

"Well, no, officah, sorry, we ain't seen nobody come though heah lookin' like dat," Jack stated. "I'm sure if she had, we'da noticed, right boys?" The other boys nodded and murmured in agreement.

The officer seemed a little critical of their answer, but brushed it off. "Very well. Thank you, boys." The officer turned around and led his group back the way they had come from.

As soon as the girl was sure everything was all right, she pushed her way to the front of the group. "Thanks a lot!" she thanked him warmly, giving a small grin. "I'm Ellie Marshall."

"Kelly. Jack Kelly," he greeted her genially, and shook her hand. For the first time, he got a good look at her. Her untidy chocolate-brown hair was falling out of it's hastily made pigtail braids, and her eyes, with no other way to describe their mix of every eye color possible, were hazel. And she was, in fact, wearing boys clothing! They looked loose on her, as though she'd gotten them from someone else.

"Kelly? I've heard of you. They call you Cowboy, don't they?" She furrowed her eyebrows. "Oh, yeah! You were the one that led the strike! Good job, good job." Ellie nodded approvingly, obviously trying to keep the conversation away from the impending questions.

"Why were those bulls chasin' ya?" Racetrack asked curiously. "It's not very often ya getta see a bunch cops chasin' a girl." The other boys chuckled in agreement, and Ellie couldn't seem to shake the odd feeling she was getting from Jack's stare.

"Well, they think I stole these clothes – which I didn't, and then they told me it was illegal for girls to wear boys clothes – which it isn't. They just think I'm some stupid little blonde… _would you stop looking at me like that, please_?" The group of newsies tried to figure out whom exactly she was yelling at, since all of them had been looking in her direction.

"Who?" David asked, leaning forward. "Who's lookin' at you like what?"

"You." Ellie pointed at Jack. "Would you _please_ stop staring at me like that?"

"Why?" Jack asked, smirking mercilessly as she squirmed in discomfort.

"Because it makes me a little uncomfortable!" the brunette retorted, pulling herself to her full height; a whopping five feet, six inches, and leaning towards him angrily.

"Well, look a this, gentlemen, we've got a brunette heah that's gots the temper of a redhead!" Jack proclaimed, arousing a loud outburst of laugher from his fellow newsies.

"I'm not angry, just a little annoyed," she stated, brushing a piece of hair out of her mouth. "I just have this thing about people staring at me like this-" She opened her eyes as wide as possible and didn't move her gaze from his face for a few seconds. "-When I met them three minutes ago! I dunno, call me crazy, it's just a _little_ weird, you know?"

The amused chuckles, which had emitted as the aftermath of Ellie's sarcastic comment, died down as soon as Jack turned and glared at the newsies. "Well, it looks like wes gots us a wise goil heah, fellas." The boys laughed again, this time _at_ Ellie. "Do you know what we do ta peoples like you, small fry?"

"What are you gonna do, Mr. Tough?" Ellie asked mockingly. "Soak me? Throw me in a trashcan? Spit on my shoes? Mock me in a rather unpleasant manner? Oh, I'm shakin' in my boots…"

"Oh, dat's not healthy…" Racetrack muttered, shaking his head even as Jack approached the girl threateningly.

"Ya know, is I was youse, I think I'd be a little more grateful for the fact that I jus' saved youse's skin from them bulls." He pushed her lightly on the shoulder. "Youse sure're brave foi such a shrimp, though…" He grinned down at her suddenly. "Youse gotta place ta stay, kid?"

Ellie hesitated, alarmed by his personality switch of threatening to cordial in three seconds flat. "No." She shook her head. "I'm new in town."

"Yeah, wes could pretty much tell that from tha accent." There were snickers in the crowd of newsies. "So how 'bout ya come wit me, an' we get youse set up at th' Carnegie Hill Lodging House?" He spit on his hand and held it out for her to shake.

"Ew!" she exclaimed, jumping away from his hand. "That's gross!" Instead of shaking his hand, she spit on his shoe. "There. Now we're even."

-x-x-

"Well, this is it. Home sweet home."

As Jack and Ellie stood in front of the Carnegie Hill Lodging House, Jack crossing his arms, and Ellie with her hands on her hips, she inspected it carefully. It was a small, nondescript building, with a boring exterior and dirty window. Ellie sighed.

"And this building hasn't been condemned yet? You guys just can't let go, can you?" Ellie asked sarcastically, eyeing the slightly crumbling walls with apparent unease.

Jack grinned over at her. "Youse gotta sense a humor, Marshall. They's two ways that can woik in this city; it can eithah make ya, or break ya. Ya gotta decide what it's gonna do foi ya, though."

"That's hardly something you can decide on your own, Cowboy," Ellie retorted, raising an eyebrow. "It all depends on how well other people take your sarcasm." She smiled at him happily. "And you just happen to be one of those people… sort of."

"Well… aftah you." Jack, in a very gentleman-like gesture, held the door open for Ellie.

"Aw, such a gentleman… thanks, Cowboy." She grinned cheekily at him, and he rolled his eyes.

"Youse tha only goil I knows whose can make funna me an' get away wit it," Jack stated, walking over to Kloppman's desk and grinning widely. "We's gots a new newsie, Klopp!"

"Well, maybe not necessarily a _newsie_," Ellie interjected, appearing around the corner. "I just… need a place to stay." She scratched the back of her head.

Kloppman seemed surprised to see the girl. "Well, well, well… a girl, in the lodging house." Kloppman looked at Jack. "Now, Jack, you know that I don't like puttin' up girls here. They cause too much ruckus with the boys."

"Yeah, but I'm good, and I can clean, and I'm smart and I really need a place to stay!" Ellie pleaded, a little more dramatically then believable. But, hey, why not?

Before Ellie knew what was happening, Jack was behind her, grabbed both her arms, and laid his cheek on her's, looking right at the lodging housekeeper. "Now, Klopp, how can you resist this cute little face of poifection?" Jack asked. Ellie pulled off her best cutesy and innocent look. "C'mon, Klopp!"

The older man rolled his eyes. "Fine, fine, fine…" he muttered. "I'll write ya down in my records." Jack and Ellie grinned at each other. "But I don't want ya sleepin' in the same room as the boys. Lord knows, they've got enough hormones messing them up without it. I'll let you sleep in another room, as long as ya clean it out." Kloppman unhooked a key behind the desk and stood up.

"Yes, sir!" Ellie exclaimed, giving him a mock salute. "I am confident in my abilities to successfully carry out my duties!" Jack snorted at the quirky brunette's eagerness. "Are you makin' fun of me, Mr. Kelly? 'Cause I thought I heard you snickering at me!"

"Nah, I ain't makin' fun a ya," Jack explained, a small smile creeping onto his face as the smaller girl began a mock fight.

"I think you're makin' fun of me! You are, aren't ya? Huh? Huh? Huh?" Ellie poked him in the back as the two followed Kloppman up the stairs.

"Hey, I didn' know this room was heah," Jack stated, wandering into the room Kloppman had unlocked. It was stacked high with boxes and rather dusty.

"It's a testament to you genius, Kelly, that you can walk by a room every day and never realize that's it's there…" Ellie muttered, rolling her eyes.

"Did you jus' call me stoopit, Marshall? 'Cause I think youse called me stoopit," Jack stated, leaning over her.

"No, Kelly, I didn't call you 'stoopit', I called you stupid. S-T-U-P-I-D. Stupid. Pronounce it correctly, if you're going to use the word again."

Kloppman watched from the doorway with a mixture of amusement and concern at the two bantering teenagers. He knew they were only joking, but they had just met, and he had a feeling this wasn't going to be easy… But, instead of saying anything, he just left the two to with one set of instructions: take the boxes up to the attic, and then bring down the bed. And then he was gone.

"Hey, wait, Jack, don't you have to sell papers today?" Ellie asked suddenly, turning to him.

Jack hated to admit it, but he kind of liked the way she said his name, like they'd been friends a long time, and it was a familiar sound to her lips. He felt his cheeks begin to grow hot.

"Uh… I gots Davey ta take care of mine foi me," Jack explained. "Is it a little hot in heah?" he asked, walking over to the small room's only window and opening it.

"No, I'm fine… but then, I'm from the South, so heat's not a big deal for me…" Ellie shrugged, picking up a large box.

"You're from tha South?" Jack asked, picking up an even large box than Ellie's.

"Yeah, Florida… and Maine, too. Hence the accent, or lack thereof. So, basically, I've lived in the hottest and the coldest parts of the country." She grinned cheekily at him over her shoulder as they climbed the stairs to the attic. "Need some help with that, Cowboy?"

"Shouldn't I be askin' you that?" Jack asked, clearly struggling more with his box than Ellie was with her's. "I could get one o' tha othah boys ta help us…"

"Nah, I'm fine…"

-x-x-

They finished in a little over an hour, including the time it too to sweep out the room, and bring the bed down. By the time it was all set up, it wasn't looking too bad; there was even a small set of shelves and desk that had been used to stack things on.

"Well, this is nice!" Ellie grinned, surveying their handiwork. "Y'know, with a little bit of paint, or wallpaper, and some rugs, this could be a _cute_ room. Anyway…" She flopped down on the bed. "Time to unpack!" For the first time, Jack noticed the bag she carried.

He watched in interest as she began taking things out of the bag. A few changes of clothes (even a dress!), quite a few books, and paper and pencils. There was also a pinwheel and small ball, but Jack decided he wouldn't ask about the latter two.

"D'ya like ta write?" Jack asked, sitting down next to her and picking up the paper, which had some scribbly, but undeniably girly, cursive on it, and started to read.

"Yeah, I do." The girl snatched the paper from Jack, causing him to quickly protest. "Please don't read my stuff." Her eyes pleaded with him to not read any further.

"Well why not? You gots somethin' ta hide? Whaddaya write, anyway?" he asked, leaning over her shoulder and trying to read the paper.

"Just… stuff. Sometimes I write stories, sometimes I write quotes for stories I've never even written… and sometimes I just write little comment about the day." Ellie shrugged. "Nothing special."

"We've gotta go ta Tibby's, foi lunch!" Jack exclaimed, jumping off the bed. Ellie stood up slowly. "You ain't got any money, don't ya?"

"Not enough to buy food. Probably just enough to buys a newspaper." Ellie stretched and yawned widely.

"Well, I'll pay foi ya." He bounded to the door. "C'mon, let's go!"

Ellie crossed her arms and strolled over to him. For some reason, she realized just how good-looking he was, leaning on the doorway, with that boyish grin and… well there was something about his nose and eyebrows. Ellie had an odd fetish for distinct noses and eyebrows.

"Hey, Jack?"

"Yeah?" He grinned down at her, and she realized just how short she was compared to him; a good six inches shorter.

"Thanks for helping me today. With everything." In one quick motion, she stood on the tips of her toes, and pecked him lightly on the cheek. When her heels set back down on the ground, both of them were blushing profusely.

**Author's Note of the Chapter:** Well, now we've met Ellie? Isn't she such a charming person? (Watches as everyone gives her the "Oh my God, she's on crack!" look) No? Well, kinda… (Ducks as audience throws rotten produce at her) Sor-ry! I'll shut up now!


	2. Chapter Two: Two Blurs of Color and Nois...

**Chapter Two: Two Blurs of Color and Noise**

"So dis is Tibby's…"

"Obviously, your taste in living structures carries into your taste in dining structures," Ellie commented dryly as Jack led her into the restaurant.

They were greeted with loud shouts of "Hey, Cowboy!" and "Who's da broad?" Ellie wasn't exactly disappointed by the fact that very few catcalls were heard. It wasn't the kind of attention she needed from young men.

Jack introduced her to two of his friends. "Les, Davey, this is Mouth."

"And since when did I become _Mouth_?" Ellie asked, smacking him on the arm. Most people she did this to found it incredibly annoying, but he just grinned at her.

"Since Ise met you this mornin'. You ain't stopped taklin' since then." Jack sat down in the booth next to David, so Ellie sat next to Les. "And youse got a real sarcastic attitude, so youse a mouth."

"Fair enough." Ellie shrugged, turning to Les. "Hey, kid? What's up? I'm Ellie."

"I'm Les," the ten year old replied, shaking her outstretched hand. "Is it true you almost got caught by the bulls today?"

"_Almost_ is the key word there, Les, _almost_. Luckily my friend Jackie-Boy here saved me from a fate worse than death, I'm sure. And he's still buying lunch for me. So, Les, what exactly do you like to do when you're not pushing papers…"

"What's with the girl?" David muttered, never taking his eyes off Ellie. "And why is she wearing boys clothes?"

"We's saved 'er from tha bulls taday, an' she needed a place ta stay, so she gonna be stayin' at tha lodgin' house foi a while…" By now boys began to gather around their table, and, hearing this piece of news, either looked extremely happy or severely annoyed.

"Have you ever made a pinwheel, Les?" Ellie was asking the boy. When he shook his head, she gasped in alarm. "David…" She clutched the young man's arm. "Your brother has never made a pinwheel? How could you deprive this poor child from such pure and unadulterated fun?" Jack laughed, but it turned into a cough when David glared at him.

"How did you know he was my brother?" David asked in shock.

"Telepathy." She grinned at David's exasperated look. "Okay, family resemblance."

"Really?' David asked eagerly.

"No. Jack told me." Ellie grinned. "Ha! You almost thought I had telepathy! Loser!"

"She's kind of annoying, isn't she?" David asked, his friend.

Jack just shrugged. "There's a reason she's tha Mouth. Besides, it's kinda refreshin', havin' someone wit an actual sense of humor, 'stead of peoples who just talk all tha time 'bout _nothin'_." He glared pointedly at David. "'Least she's funny 'bout it."

-x-x-

"Sos, Ellie, we gots ta find somethin' foi ya ta do foi money," Jack stated, leaning back from his meal. Everyone else was done, but Ellie was still picking at her sandwich.

"Well, I don't really want to be a newsie…" The brunette cringed slightly, even as every single boy in the restaurant asked the same question…

"_What's wrong with being a newsie?_"

"Calm down, you deranged psychopaths!" Everyone quieted down, mainly because of the fact that they didn't understand what she had just called them. It sounded like an insult, but you never know.

"Well, what do ya like ta do?" Jack asked, leaning forward. He was seated directly across from her, so, at this angle, she could look straight into his eyes. "There ain't much else, 'cept sellin' papes…"

"Well…" Ellie thought hard for a few seconds. "I really like to sing! And I'm good, too! I mean, this is New York…"

Jack's eyes widened. "I have got tha poifect job foi ya!" He grinned. "I know this woman, Medda, she owns this joint down tha street, and Ise sure she'd give ya a job!"

"Really?" Ellie asked excitedly. "That would be _so great_! Could you really do that, Jack? For me?"

"_Could ya really do that, Jack? Foi me?_" Racetrack muttered under his breath from the next booth over. Kid Blink and Specs tried to disguise their laughter, but Boots just glared at him.

"Jack's doing a really nice ting foi her!" Boots hissed, silencing the three other boys.

"Yeah, of couse! Let's go ovah ta Medda's right now!"

In what seemed like a blur of color and noise, the two older teenagers were out the door. No one seemed to realize what happened at first, but when they saw the money left for Jack and Ellie's tab, they began to understand.

"It was hard enough with one of him around!" David whined to Les. "But now we'll have to keep up with two of them!"

Les stared at his older brother and shook his head in pity, and a little bit of confusion, a divine testament to the fact that young people are often times smarter than their superiors…

**Author's Note of the Chapter**: Yes, I have an odd fetish with pinwheels and bouncy balls… DO NOT TAUNT ME! Kudos (I mean the food!) and snaps (à la Legally Blonde 2) for anyone who reviews!


	3. Chapter Three: How the Mouth Got Her Job

**Chapter Three: How the Mouth Got Her Job**

"Your friends seem really nice… a little bitter towards me, however," Ellie observed wisely, following Jack through the twisting streets of Manhattan to Irving Hall.

"Eh, it's jus' 'cause they think ya talk too much… I gots tha same problem. They get mad at mes whenevah I get goin'…" Jack explained.

"Or maybe because I'm a girl?" Ellie pointed out nonchalantly. _Maybe they're jealous that I'm getting more attention than them… wait, did I just think that? Stupid! He just being nice to you! He'll forget all about you in three days!_

"Maybe." Jack shrugged. "Who knows, wit those guys! They nevah seem ta give anyone a break, though. Don' think about it too much. It'll hoit ya head."

"Ah, I see. A complex group of characters, are they not?" Ellie shook her head. "Sorry, I'm starting to speak like a moron. Or at least someone's who's not very smart. So, Kelly… why are you taking me here, again?" She stopped in front of the back door and stared at it.

"So ya can make money," Jack explained, holding her elbow and pulling her through the door. "I can't pay foi ya lunches foievah, ya know."

"Oh, yeah, thanks for that, Jack. That was really nice of you. Especially since you only make, what? Fifty cents a day in profit?" She shook her head. "It must be hard, being you. But then, it's hard being me, it's hard being the President… it all evens out in the end, doesn't it?"

"Shut up, Mouth. Yer talkin' too much."

"Sorry."

Jack left Ellie at the base of a flight of wooden stairs. He knocked on the door at the top, and a pretty woman with red hair and a yellow silk dress on appeared.

"Jackie! How're you doin'?" the woman – Ellie assumed she was Medda – wrapped Jack in a tight hug, and Ellie found herself feeling just a little jealous.

"Medda, I want ya ta meet a new friend of mine, Miss Ellie Marshall. She's new to Manhattan." Jack grinned as the two women shook hands. "Ellie, this is tha brilliant Medda Larkson."

"It's nice to meet you," Ellie greeted her kindly.

"Oh, she's so sweet! Where'd you pick her up, Kelly? She's too good for you!" Medda looked Ellie in the eye. "You have a very nice smile."

"Thank you." Ellie smiled, and Jack was suddenly very aware of the fact that Ellie did, in fact, have a rather charming smile.

"How'd you end up with this kid?" Medda asked jokingly, tilting her head over in Jack's direction.

"Call it divine intervention, or just a random twist of fate that Satan has bestowed upon me."

"You really have a way with words, don't you?" Medda asked. "Very well educated, too…"

"Medda, Mouth heah needs a job, and she says she really like ta sing, so I thought it would be good foi [AN1] her to meet ya," Jack explained.

"Well, with a nickname like Mouth, I hope she can sing…" Medda retorted, giving Ellie a wink as she teased Jack. "Let's hear you."

Ellie squeaked. "Right… right now?" She sighed. "Okay." Shaking her head, she ran her hand over her hair and loosened up a little bit. When she opened her mouth, it was quite what anyone had expected from this short, talkative, witty girl…

"_My heart sings a melody,_

_An everlasting melody._

_A tune of love,_

_A song of peace,_

_An anthem that sets me free…_

_Just when I think there's no song to sing,_

_I hear a melody that is everlasting._

_Everlasting… melody…"_

When she sang, her whole face lit up. Every part of her body was part of the beat. Her foot tapped to the beat, she sung her hips to the beat. It even seemed like, if you had checked, her heart would be pulse to the beat.

"That was wonderful!" Medda exclaimed, throwing her arms around Ellie. "You're hired!"

"Really?" Ellie asked, grinning widely. "Yes." Medda nodded. "Really! Right here, right now. We'll start practicing immediately." 

"Did you hear that, Jack? I get to start right away! It's so wonderful!" Ellie exclaimed, lost in a world of her own.

"I gotta go woik. You'll make her inta tha best singah evah, right, Medda?"

"Yes, Now get going, kid! You need the money!" She shooed Jack out the door.

"Hey, wait up, Cowboy!" Ellie sprinted out the right behind him as he was pulling his hat on. "I owe you this…" She stretched up and gave him another kiss on the cheek, for the second time that day.

"A'right, don' get all sentimental wit me…" He grinned. "Congratulations, Mouth." He reached for her hand and kissed her tenderly on the hand. She had to catch herself from swooning.

"I don't really remember the way back to the lodging house. Will you come get me right before Medda's performance? I'm going to need a 'guide'. Don't want to be kidnapped, or asked to donate money or something..."

"Sure. Wait foi me inside, Mouth. Manhattan's not exactly tha kinda place ya wanna be wanderin' aroun' on a cold night…" With one last grin, he sprinted down the street.

Ellie floated back though the door. "I think I'm in love," the teenage girl sighed happily, only half-aware of the fact that Medda was watching her carefully. She glanced down at the hand he had kissed. "I'm never washing this hand again…"

"You'll have to wash it sometime…" Medda grinned, grabbing the girl's shoulders and leading her onstage.

-x-x-

"Hey, Jack, why's we gotta walk dis way at dis time'a night?" Racetrack asked, sucking nervously on his cigar. "It's not da bes' place ta be, right now, y'know, Jack?"

"'Cause wes gotta pick up Ellie!" Jack replied, starting to feel the energy return to him after the long day. He hadn't been very happy since he and Sarah broke up (in fact he'd been downright broody), so all the newsies were very curious as to why he was so happy suddenly. Nobody wanted to ask him, but Racetrack had a bet going that he would get together with Ellie in under a month. Even Spot Colon had put in a few cents.

When Jack, Race, and Boots got to the back door of the stage, the door was opened before jack could even knock on the door.

"I was worried you forgot!" she breathed, her breath congealing in front of her in the cold October air. She was wearing a dress, a far cry from the boys clothing she had worn earlier. She looked much more graceful and like… well, like a girl.

"How'd ya know we was comin'?" Jack asked.

"Come on. You guys are loud enough to make a heard of elephants look like ballerinas!" Ellie pointed out. "Come on in and warm up, first. You guys look like you're freezing!"

"Yeah, thanks…" Racetrack replied sarcastically. "We's would've been home by now if we didn' have ta stop by heah."

"No one made you come," Ellie pointed out, sitting down next to Jack. "You could've gone straight home."

To this comment there was no comeback. Race just opened and closed his mouth a few times, like a fish trying to get air, and hurried over to the stove.

"So, how'd it go?" Jack asked, grinning at the exuberant expression on Ellie's face. "That good, huh?"

"Oh, it was great! She taught me a new song and dance, and she says, if I practice _really, really, really_ hard, I can perform tomorrow! You guys can come and watch me! For free!" She sighed. "I'm so happy!" She jumped up. "Let's get going! I'm so tired; I really need to sleep." She gave a wide yawn as proof.

"Let's go, then." Everyone herded out the door, unaware of the fact that someone on the street was watching them. When they had walked down the road a short distance, Jack lit a cigarette.

"Those're wicked bad for you, you know," Ellie pointed out. "You can get addicted." Jack took it out of his mouth, stared at it for a second, and then smashed it beneath his foot.

"Someone's followin' us…" Jack muttered. "Don' look ovah your shoulder." They froze at the sudden sound of horse's hooves on the pavement, and the same police officer they had ran into that morning appeared.

"What are you kids doing out at this time of night?" he asked gruffly, looking from one innocent face to the other. He obviously didn't recognize Ellie; she was much better dressed, and had her hair combed and down.

"We was jus' runnin' some choires, sir. Nothin' wrong wit that," Jack replied, giving the officer his best innocent look – which he could pull off very well.

"We gots ta get home so's our family can eat, soi [AN1]!" Racetrack pleaded.

"What about him?" the officer asked, pointing to Boots. There was a brief silence as every tried to come up with an excuse. Ellie was the first.

"Family friend."

-x-x-

The group of adolescents burst into fits of laughter as soon as the policeman was far enough away.

"What a moron…" Ellie sighed, her laughter dying down. "_Um… okay…_" She lowered her voice as she mocked the officer. "_Move along, then_."

"How stoopit do ya get?" Race exclaimed, clutching his side. "If I knew you could become a bull being dat stoopit, I woulda done it a long time ago…"

-x-x-

The group of teenagers stumbled into the lodging house a while later, cheeks flushed with cold and hair windblown, but still giggling slightly at the joke they shared.

"You kids are getting back very late," Kloppman observed, trying to keep the reprimanding and worried tone out of his voice.

"We's ran inta a little trouble wit da bulls," Race explained, nudging Jack in the side. The group of teenagers burst into another bout of laughter.

"I'd hardly call it _trouble_," Ellie pointed out. "He just wondered why we were out at nine at night. Male chauvinist pig. He thought they were… doing things to me, or something."

"Shut up, Mouth."

"Sor-ry. Right back at ya, Cowboy." Ellie gave him one last grin, and then sprinted up the stairs to her room.

"Hey, she's got it foi ya," Racetrack stated, nudging his friend in the side again. "An' it seems like ya like 'er, too."

"Nah…" Jack shook his head.

"Well, she's cute…" Race winked at him. "S'okay if I try?"

"Hey, it's a free country…" Jack shrugged. "Whatevah. She a nice goil, a little too chatty foi me."

"Yeah, well, youse two has a lot in common… ya both makes funna peoples an' talks too much." Race shook his head. "I dunno, Jack, you two's a lot alike. Dere's somethin' between ya two…"

"Look, Race, it ain't nuthin'! Just drop it, a'right?" Jack protested, starting climb the stairs. Race followed close behind.

"Fair enough…"

**AN1**: _Foi_ and _soi_ are pronounced _foy_ and _soy_, kind of the way you pronounce _foi_ in French.

**Author's Note of the Chapter**: Nothing like a cold walk down a Manhattan street during the night to bring everyone together…


	4. Chapter Four: Wake Up, Mouth!

**Chapter Four: Wake Up, Mouth! and Slapping Jack With a Broom Handle**

Jack stopped at Ellie's doorway on the way out. Everyone else seemed to pass it without looking twice, but Jack couldn't ignore it. Ellie was curled up at the foot of the bed, drooling slightly on the blankets.

"Hey, Mouth, wake up!" he shouted suddenly. The girl groaned and rolled over too far, falling to the hard wood floor. She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and blinked a few times. She was wearing a nightdress, which, considering her habits in clothing herself, wasn't very surprising. It was a little odd to see her in so few clothes, however.

"What time is it?" she groaned, standing up and rifling through her clothes to find something to wear. "Medda said I can wear my clothes to work, but I gotta wear the dresses when I get there." She sighed and pulled out a shirt and pants. "Could you _leave_, Jack? I'm not dressing in front of you!"

"Sorry…" He closed the door and stood just outside, watching the other boys rush by. A few of them muttered sleepy hellos, and some even stopped to talk for a little while with him.

"Why'd you wait for me?"

Jack was surprised to find Ellie right behind him, standing in the open doorway.

"I didn' wait foi ya. I was just standin' heah," Jack lied quickly.

Ellie gave him the utmost look of disbelief. "Yeah, well, next time, how about _I_ wake _you_ up and make you change in front of _me_?" she asked exasperatedly. "Maybe beat you a few times with broom handle, just to make sure you're awake! How'd you like that, Cowboy?"

"Ya gots a big mouth… ya bettah watch what ya do wit it," Jack stated, shoving her down the hallway. "It'll get ya inta more trouble then ya want."

"I dunno…" She shook her head. "I want an awful lot of trouble." She trotted down the hall and muttered a few lines of a song, twirling around and nearly running into Kid Blinks. "I'm performing tonight, Jackie-Boy!"

"That's great, Ellie. I'm real happy for youse." Jack grinned, following her down the corridor. "Can I come see ya tanight?"

"Yeah! Medda says all the newsies can get in for free, if they want." Ellie trotted down the stairs as quickly as possible, stopping in front of Kloppman. "General!" She saluted him again and bounded away, leaving an amused-looking Kloppman and a confused-looking Jack in her midst.

-x-x-

"_Blessed children,_

_Though you wander lost, and depraved._

_Jesus loves you._

_You shall be saved._"

"Amen," Ellie muttered, taking her bread and walking away from the nun's wagon quickly. "You seemed really bored. Don't those nuns creep you out?"

"Ah, they don' bothah me. As long's they give us food, they can do whatevah they wan'," Jack stated, looking over at her. "Why did you say 'amen'?"

"I'm a Methodist. Even though I don't go to church, I still practice my faith. I don't have to say amen, but I still do. What those nuns sing; it's like a prayer for us. Prayers aren't taken lightly. At least, they _shouldn't_ be." The bell on the clock rang out, signifying that it was seven o'clock. "I have to be at Medda's by seven thirty." She jogged off down the street, in the direction of Medda's theater.

-x-x-

When Jack told the other newsies about Ellie, and how she was getting to perform tonight, very few were interested. Boots, Specs, and Crutchy agreed to come, Racetrack said he would come, but "Only to see Medda," and Les convinced David to go. Les seemed to have taken a liking to the teenage girl, who he described as "A seventeen year old who acted like she was ten". [AN1]

The crowd jostled them, and only by pure luck did they manage to find a place where they could all sit together. When Ellie was announced, Racetrack rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair, lighting a cigar.

She was wearing a long, streamlined dress with no sleeves and a large flounce in the back. The lighter shade of green complimented her, all though in most greens she looked depressing and dark, with her dark hair and fair skin.

"_I know a place,_

_Where dreams are born._

_And time is never planned._

_It's not on any chart you must find it with your heart._

_Never, neverland…_" [AN2]

-x-x-

As she finished her song, the crowd erupted in applause. Ellie smiled and her blushing was evident, even under the harsh theater light, with can make anyone pale. She curtsied, and hurried off the stage.

"I gotta go, fellas," Jack stated, standing up and winding his way through the crowd. The other boys exchanged dubiously glances, but decided that it was better to not question the choices of their unquestioned leader.

Ellie had already changed out of her dress and back into her regular outfit: boy's clothes. She was standing at the balcony, watching Medda with a dreamy face, as she flew across the stage.

"Hey, Mouth." Ellie turned her head, grinned, and Jack threw his arms around her. "You was great, Ellie. You couldn' a done bettah if you was Medda hoiself." [AN3]

Ellie rolled her eyes and slapped him lightly on the chest. "Aw, you're too kind…" Her grin widened. "I did trip during that one part though… but I covered it up pretty well."

"Ya must've, 'cause I didn' notice…" Jack clapped her on the shoulder.

"Oh wait!" Ellie pulled out something from behind her back. It was a pinwheel, painted blue and green. Jack snorted but grinned widely at her. "Did Les come with you?"

"Ellie!" A small blur knocked Ellie to the ground. Ellie giggled quietly and sat up, wrapping Les in a warm hug.

"Hey, Lessy! I made something for you!" the seventeen year old stated. "But first…" She pushed herself onto her feet. "There." She presented the pinwheel to Les.

"Wow…" He held the toy tenderly in his hands and stared at it. "My own pinwheel…" He grew pale, and stared to look like he would fall asleep.

"Les, are you okay?" David asked, placing a hand on his younger brother's shoulder. "You don't look very good."

"My… own… pinwheel…" Les watched as the toy spun around. "This is so great."

"Hope ya like it, Les." Ellie crouched down to his height. "I can make you another one. Blue and yellow… or green and yellow… or red and orange… any color you want!"

"Red and yellow!" Les exclaimed, jumping up into Ellie's arms. "You're so cool, Ellie! Will you stay forever?" Ellie threw her head back and laughed.

"As long as you stay with me, Les." She kissed the boys forehead in a motherly fashion. "Didja like my song? Was it good?"

Les nodded. "The best. You're my new favorite singer."

Ellie laughed again. "Don't start sayin' that until you've heard everyone else in the world. There's people a lot better than me out there." She stood up. "Hey, Boots." She shook the shorter boy's hand. "David. Specs" Ellie frowned. "No one else came?"

"Well, ah…" Jack rubbed the back of his neck. "Race came, but he stayed out ta watch Medda."

"Oh…" Ellie pulled the smile back onto her face. "Okay. Maybe it was better that there weren't more people I knew in the audience. If I had messed up… that would've been embarrassing."

"Let's go home, Mouth," Jack stated, throwing his arm around Ellie's shoulders and heading for the door. "Race knows 'is way home. He'll stay as longs as 'e wants."

-x-x-

"Jackie-Boy! Wake up!"

Jack cracked an eye open. Sunlight was beginning to pour through the windows. None of the other newsies were awake, and Kloppman was nowhere to be seen. So who was trying to wake him up?

"Jack! Wake up!" He was hit in the side with something very hard. "Wake up, Jack!" Jack rolled over and immediately recognized the mass of brown curls over the edge of the bed. "Heya, Jack," Ellie greeted him, stepping on the bunk below her to see his face. There was a soft "Ow!" as she stepped on Racetrack.

"Are ya crazy, Mouth?" Jack exclaimed, swatting the girl out of the way. "No one else's up!"

"Yeah, well, what goes around comes around. I threatened to wake you up and hit you with a broom handle, which I did. Teach you not to mess with girls!" She poked him one last time in the side to emphasize her point. Literally. [AN4]

"Get outta heah, squirt!"

**AN1**: Betcha didn't think Ellie was seventeen, didja? Huh? Huh?

**AN2**: Chocolate-dipped cowboy hats for anyone who can figure out what play the song is from (if you have half a brain you can probably guess.) No, it's not about Michael Jackson. Wink, wink Another clue!

**AN3**: Yet again, _hoi_ is pronounced _hoy_. Wow, it's amazing how much this is starting to sound like _Spanish_ class.

**AN4**: I think everyone will get this, but, if you do, I'll give you a cuddly Les plushie.

**Author's Note of The Chapter**: None, because I already put in four side notes. . Meh.


	5. Chapter Five: The Truth Comes Out and Bo...

**Chapter Five: The Truth Comes Out and Body Heat is Shared**

          Ellie had been at the lodging house just a few weeks, and most of the newsies who hadn't really liked her at first – the majority, in fact – were finally warming up to her.  Jack and Ellie still hadn't gotten together, which had been a major disappointment to everyone that had betted.  Ellie was making much more money than the newsies now, working for Medda, so she would treat random newsies to lunch at Tibby's from day to day, most of the time including Jack.

          "Hey, Ells, d'ya know when you're gonna be performin' next?" Camden Romano asked.  Camden, the daughter of an Irish immigrant and an Italian immigrant, was one of the few girl newsies, and had becoming one of Ellie's close friends in the time since Ellie had arrived in Manhattan.  Camden had bright, pure blue eyes and contrasting, bright red hair.  She was as thin as a pole, even compared to Ellie, who was slim.

          "Uh…" Ellie paused as she thought. "I think tomorrow.  Why, Cam?" The brunette watched unhappily as Camden picked at the lunch she had bought for her.

          Camden seemed surprised. "Well, I thought you might want to tell everyone… Jack especially," she explained.

          "Why would I want to invite Jack 'especially'?" Ellie asked, completely lost in the world of her friend's imagination. "What makes him different from everyone else?  Aside from the fact that he's probably my best friend?"

          "Oh, c'mon, Ells, everyone _knows_." Camden grinned.

          "About what?  _What_ exactly does everyone know about, Camden?" Ellie asked, glaring at her friend.

          The smile seemed to practically wipe off Camden's face. "You seriously don't know?" Ellie raised her eyebrows and shook her head. "Honestly, of all people, _you_ should know what I'm talking about… especially because it involves Cowboy."

          "Camden, just tell me what the hell you're talkin' about!" Ellie snapped, slamming her fist down on the table. "No, I don't know what you're talking about!  Why do people always say stuff like this to me?  _We should invite Jack_.  _Do you wanna invite Jack, Ellie_?  _Jack's gonna be there_!  I don't know what people are talking about!"

          "Okay, first of all, let me point out one fact," Camden began.

          Ellie stared at her expectantly. "And… what would that be?"

          "Don't kill the messenger." Ellie opened her mouth to protest, but Camden cut her off. "Just let me talk." She took a deep breath. "Okay.  You know how you and Jack always joke around with each other?  How you guys get a long so well?"

          Ellie nodded. "Yeah, I guess so.  But I still don't really get where you're goin' with this."

          "Okay, just let me finish!" the redhead exclaimed.  She thought for a moment, and then turned to the booth next to them. "Hey, Race, I need your help!"

          Racetrack appeared around the corner of the booth. "How may I help youse, fai' lady?" Camden leaned over and whispered something in his ear.

          Race nodded after a few seconds and turned to Ellie. "See, Ellie, when a man and a woman love each other very much-"

          The redhead smacked him on the back of his head. "Not that, you moron!" She leaned over and whispered something else in his ear.

          Racetrack grinned. "This'll be fun. Okay, Ellie, youse knows hows when youse around Jack, ya get real happy an' energetic, an' ya get dis weid feelin' like da woild's spinnin' 'round?" Racetrack asked.

          "But I'm always happy and energetic…" Ellie protested.

          Race glared at her. "Jus' answer da question!"

          The brunette rolled her eyes exasperatedly. "Well… yeah, I guess.  Jack's just fun to be around, that's all." She shrugged.

          "Nah.  Ellie, you're in love wit' Jack."

          It was like the ground had opened up beneath her and swallowed her up.  She felt like someone had ripped out her intestines and reinserted them in her throat.

          "I am not!" she exclaimed, slapping Racetrack squarely on the jaw and stormed out of the restaurant.  Everyone in the place, including Jack, looked up from their meal as the normally happy girl looked like she was about to murder the entire population of Manhattan.  Jack looked over at Racetrack and Camden and followed Ellie out.

          "Dat hoit!" Race shouted, falling into the booth beside Camden.

          "Aw, you poor baby…" Camden whimpered sympathetically.  She frowned suddenly and smacked him lightly herself. "Get over yourself."

-x-x-

          "Hey, hey, Ellie, wait up…" Jack shouted, running after her.

          "I don't want to talk to you!" Ellie shouted, kicking the curb.

          Jack quickly overtook her – she couldn't run very fast – and grabbed her arm. "What'd dose two Italian yuppies say ta ya?  I'm gonna soak Race, den I'm gunna… I'm gunna make funna Camden!" [AN1]

          Ellie realized suddenly that she did see him in a different light than she'd seen him the day they met.  She'd already know a little about him from the papers, but it was another thing to meet him in person.  And, sure, she was drawn to him the very first moment he spoke to her, but as she'd gotten to know him… well, they'd become close.

          "Jack, stop threatening to beat up your friends!  It…" Ellie sighed. "They didn't insult me.  Something they said just… surprised me.  But… I don't know." She shook her head. "Life's confusing, y'know?  You spend your whole life trying to figure stuff out, and the minute you've got it figured out the rules change." She thumped down clumsily on the sidewalk

          "So do I gotta soak Race, or are ya okay?" Jack asked, sitting down beside her.

          Ellie gave one of her patented unladylike snorts. "It's not always about beating people up, Jack.  You'd learn that, if you thought before you did stuff." She patted his arm and gave him her best "I'm okay!" smile. "Just, forget the whole thing ever happened, okay?"

          "Yeah…" He gave her an uncertain nod. "Yeah.  Okay." She went to stand up, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back down. "If anyone evah talks ta ya bad, ya jus' come ta me, okay?" Ellie stared at him. "Okay?"

          "Okay!  Fine Jack!  I'll tell you when someone mocks me, because I'm a silly little damsel in distress and I can't take care of myself!" she shouted. "For God's sake, Jack, I'm seventeen, not _seven_!  I can take care of myself, alright?  I don't need you doing it for me!" She jumped up and stormed off in the direction of Irving Hall.

-x-x-

          "What'd ya stoopit idiots say ta her?" Jack shouted, bursting into Tibby's and storming over to Race and Camden. "What's ya say ta make her so mad?" He slammed his fists down on the table.

          "We didn' do nuthin'!" Race exclaimed. "We didn' do nuthin to 'er!"

          "Well, we _might_ have said something…" Camden began.  Jack slammed the table again, and Camden sank down in her seat, crossing her arms angrily. "Men.  Meh."

          "Shut up, Cam!" Race growled.

          "What'd ya say ta her ta make her run off like dat?" Jack growled. "Dammit, Race, tell me!"

          "What we said to Ellie is between the three of us," Camden explained calmly. "You'll know what we said when Ellie wants you to.  But for now, don't blame us for anything she does.  We just gave her something to think about." Jack became frustrated with their cryptic messages and stormed out of the restaurant.

          "Where ya goin', Jack?" Race shouted after him.

          "Why da you care?" The door slammed behind him

          "Maybe that wasn't the best way to approach the situation, Race," Camden stated thoughtfully.

          "Gee, ya think?" the Italian boy exclaimed sarcastically. "Why'd ya have ta tell me ta do dat?  There's a coitain way ya does dese tings, Camden.  An' you didn' do it good!"

          Camden sighed. "Maybe so, but I don't think the '_When a man and a woman love each other very much_' speech was very helpful on your part." [AN2]

-x-x-

          "Ya tink wes should talk wit 'im?" Mush asked quietly, peering through the crack in the door.  He, Crutchy, and Racetrack were spying on Jack, who was sitting broodingly on his bunk and looking sorry for himself.

          "No way!" Race replied, staring at Jack. "I talked wit him at lunch, an' 'e was less than… nice.  Or sane, foi dat mattah."

          "Whaddya do ta him, Race?" Crutchy asked, turning on his friend. "Jack don' jus' get mad foi no reason!" Crutchy paused thoughtfully. "Most a da time!"

          "Well, me and Camden, we had a little talk wit Ellie, if ya know what I means." Crutchy and Mush nodded knowingly.  Everyone had been trying to talk to one of the two about it; it only made sense that Camden, the sweet redhead with no common sense, would do it. "Wes jus' gave 'er a couple a' tings ta tink abou', y'know?"

          "I can hear ya three in da room," Jack stated, bursting through the door and stomping past them.

          "Hey, Jackie, where're ya goin'?" Crutchy called after him as he paused for a moment at Ellie's room, and then continued down the stairs.

          "I gots some important business at take care a', Crutchy," was Jack's last replied as he charged out the door.

          "He's goin' a see her," Race stated blatantly, taking a drag on his cigar.

          "Yep." The other two boys nodded in agreement.

-x-x-

          Ellie hadn't really been up to practicing that day.  Not after lunch, at least.  Medda had to practically bribe her to practice with the promise of free chocolate afterwards.  That girl had such a sweet tooth.

          But she wasn't going back to the lodging house.  Not as long as Jack was there.  She had virtually come to grips with the fact that, yes, she was in love with her best friend, but it was hard to forgive him for the argument.  She wasn't a child, and she wouldn't be treated like one!  Just because she was a girl, he thought she couldn't stand up for herself.  Male chauvinistic pig.  She rested her chin in her hand and sighed.

          A pair of strong arms roughly grabbed her from her seat and flung her over a pair of broad shoulders.  She automatically knew who it was, without seeing his face or hearing his voice.  She just knew.  And the cowboy hate would've tipped a lot of other people off, too.

          "Jack, let go of me!" Ellie exclaimed, trying to wriggle from his grasp.  He held on to her tightly.

          "No.  I'm not lettin' go a ya till wes talk dis ovah.  Someplace private," he stated firmly, walking her out the door.  Ellie suddenly wished that someone had been back stage to see what had happened, but they were all either taking a leak or out in the crowd.

          "Betcha wish I hadn't had a steak for dinner, don't you?" she asked, smirking coldly.

          "Betcha wish I couldn' lift a hundred and tirty pounds, doncha?" he returned smartly.  She stayed silent the rest of the journey, until he set her down on a bench.  He kneeled down in front of her. "Whassa mattah, Mouth?  Why'd ya get do mad when I said dat ta youse taday?"

          "Because…" Ellie sighed and rolled her eyes. "I don't need you to be my older brother." _I want you to be my boyfriend_, Ellie thought bitterly, but kept it to herself. "I know how to take care of myself, okay?"

          "Look, alls I'd _really_ meant was dat if ya needed help I'd help ya!" Jack explained, standing up.  He looked even taller, since she was sitting and he was standing over her.

          "Then why didn't so say that?  I wouldn't have gotten mad if you'd said that!" Ellie retorted.

          "Ya know, I think ya would've.  You were jus' lookin' foi a reason ta yell at me, so, no mattah what I'd said, ya still would a gotten mad!"

          "Well…" Ellie sighed, pulling her knees to her chest. "Maybe.  And I'm sorry I yelled at you, Jack.  I really had no right to do that." She rested her forehead on her knees. "I'm just so confused right now…" Her explanation was muffled by her pants.

          "S'okay, Ellie," Jack consoled her, wrapping at arm around her.  The girl was surprised.  Jack rarely ever called her by her first name.  Usually it was just Mouth.  Or he didn't say her name at all.

          "Y'know, Ellie's not my full first name," she pointed out.

          "Yeah, what is it?" Jack asked, grinning.

          "Eileen.  Eileen Morgan Marshall.  Isn't the whole Irish-ness of it sickening?" Ellie blanched.

          "Hey!  I'm Irish!" Jack protest.

          "So am I.  I'm pretty much half.  My parents were both half, so that basically makes me half." Ellie shook her head. "I'm also German and Welsh, but my parents were very proud of being Irish."

          Jack realized that this was the first time he'd ever heard Ellie talk about her parents, or any part of her family, for that matter.  Normally she just skirted around the issue.

          "Ya don' talk abou' yer parents a lot, do ya?" Jack asked.

          "Not really.  They died a few years ago, and, uh… can we not talk about this?" Ellie asked hesitantly. "I'd like to tell you about my family, Jack, but, uh… now's not really a great time." She stood up.

          "Well, what is, den?" he asked, standing up as well.

          "You're a little too curious, you know that, Cowboy." She shivered slightly as the cold started to get to her.

          "Here's my coat." Something warm and heavy was draped across Ellie's shoulders, and she felt much better.

          "Won't you be cold?" she asked. "We can share body heat…"

          "How do we do dat?" Jack asked, getting a little more excited than Ellie would have thought he would.  It was those stupid teenage hormones running rampant again.

          "Just stand really close to each other," she explained simply, snorting. "You ain't to bright, are ya, Cowboy?" she asked mockingly, wrapping an arm around his waist so they could stand closer.

          "Smarter den you, small fry," Jack retorted, laying his arm across her shoulders.

          "Yeah, well, if I stand out here much longer, we're gonna have to worry about a lot more than sharing body heat.  Like the fact that my side'll probably be frozen to yours."

          "Ah, dat won't be too bad." Jack grinned.

          "Why's that?" Ellie asked.

          "'Cause I'll getta sleep in da same bed witcha!" he stated.

          Ellie slapped his arm. "You pervert!  Anyway, you snore.  I've heard you from down the hall, and I heard you that day I woke you up." She giggled quietly. "Actually, when I poked you with the broom handle, you kinda went like this-" She gave a few random snorts. "Kind of like a pig being slopped.  That's what happens when you eat, anyway, so I wouldn't really worry about it, if I were you."

**AN1**: Okay, I don't want any Italian people to be offended by this.  That's just what Jack says.  I actually think Italian people are really cool.  All the ones I know are really nice to me.

**AN2**: Yay!  Camden's finally in the story!  I've been trying to put that character in for a while.  I love Camden.  She's the character that belongs to my best friend: spunky, dumb redhead, all-around clueless, and always gives semi-helpful advice to anyone who'll stand still long enough to listen.

**Author's Note of the Chapter**: I'll bet those of you with perverted minds thought this chapter was going to be about something other than what it _was_ about; Jack and Ellie sharing body heat on their way home.  That kind of makes me perverted, too, to realize that.


	6. Chapter Six: Jack Doesn’t Like Bile… Can...

**Chapter Six: Jack Doesn't Like Bile… Can't Imagine Why!**

          "Jackie-Boy… wake up…"

          Jack rolled over in bed and immediately saw Ellie's face.  For a moment, he forgot who she was, or the fact that she'd been living under the same roof as him for a little over a month.

          "Who are ya?" he asked, swatting sleepily at her head.

          "I'm your conscience… we haven't spoken in a while," Ellie stated sarcastically. [AN1]

          "Mouth!" Jack shouted, trying to hit the girl on the head.  She managed to duck out of the way.  Her reflexes were good, because she was clumsy and had to have fast reflexes to keep from getting hurt.

          "Jack, you really shouldn't hit girls…" Ellie chastised, crossing her arms and giving him a look of reprimanding on her face.

          "An' why is dat?" he asked, pushing himself up on his elbows.

          "Because they'll probably hit you back!" Ellie's hand swung through the air and smacked him on the head, not hard enough to actually hurt, but hard enough to teach Jack a lesson.  It was then that Jack realized there was no one else in the bunkroom.

          "Where'd everyone go?" Jack asked, looking around.

          "To work, smart one.  You slept in.  Kloppman tried to wake you up, but he couldn't.  Said you looked a bit peaky." Ellie scrutinized him. "You do look kinda sick.  Are you…?"

          She didn't get her answer, however, because Jack found himself jumping off the bunk and running to the bathroom.  Ellie followed him and watched with intense worry as he threw up in the toilet.

          "Aw, Jackie, you're sick…" Ellie rubbed his back as he leaned over the toilet, gasping for air.  She felt his forehead. "Oh my God!  You're burning up!" She watched as he drowsily got up and wandered down the hall to her bedroom.  He collapsed on her bed.

          Ellie watched him from the doorway. "Sure, Jack, you can sleep on my bed." She rolled her eyes when she realized he was asleep.  The metal trash basket was placed next to him in case he threw up again. "Let's play a game of solitaire…" the brunette muttered, crawling onto the other end of the bed and producing a pack of cards from her pants.

-x-x-

          "Hey, Ellie!"

          "Yeah?" Ellie's eyes shot up from her third game of solitaire.  Camden was standing in the doorway, papers in her arms, staring as Jack snored at one end of the bed, and Ellie played cards by his feet.

          "What's… goin' on here?" the redhead asked curiously, trying to keep the reprimand and uncertainty out of her voice.

          "Jack's sick…" Ellie frowned. "So I'm staying here to take care of him.  I think he stayed out in the cold too long yesterday." She shook his head. "He didn't wear his coat, like everyone else, and everyone told him to… I think he's got the flu." Camden gave her friend a small nod, and Ellie look over at her again. "Could you stop by Medda's and tell her what I told you?"

          "Yeah, I'll… I'll do that." Camden nodded, her mass of red curls bouncing under her hat. "Just… take good care of him, okay?  He looks a little peaky."

          "Yeah, I get that a lot."

-x-x-

          Jack woke up a little while after Camden left.  He tried to sit up, but found that that made his head pound, so he laid on his back and looked around the room. After a few seconds, he realized that he was in Ellie's room, on Ellie's bed, and wondered how he got there.

          "Glad to see you're finally awake," a familiar voice said from the end of the bed.  Ellie was seated at the end of the bed, playing, what looked like, blackjack.

          "How long's I sleepin'?" he asked, holding his throbbing head.

          Ellie rolled her eyes up to the ceiling in thought. "Well, you woke up at about nine, and then you barfed, and you stumbled into my room about two minutes later and passed out, and it's about lunch time now…" She quickly did the figures. "You've been asleep for about three hours."

          "Well, den I'se gotta get ta woik!" Jack exclaimed, sitting up quickly.  A wave of nausea washed over him, and it felt like he had a porcupine jabbing at his brain. "What's wrong wit' me?"

          "You've got the flu," the girl stated simply, keeping her eyes on her cards. "We told you to put your coat on, but you just didn't listen…"

          "Look, I don' need a lesson heah, Ma," Jack groaned sarcastically.

          Ellie rolled her eyes. "Sor-ry… Look, I got Camden to tell Medda that I was watching you today, and I'm not leaving until you stop…" She watched with concern as Jack leaned over and emptied the contents of his stomach into the trash basket. "-Throwing up."

          He shook his head. "I gotta get ta woik." He sat up quickly and grabbed onto a bedpost for support.

          "It won't hurt for you to miss one day of work." Ellie pushed him back onto the bed. "You should eat something."

          "If I eat, den I'll trow up more…" he groaned, falling back onto her pillow.

          "Yeah, but would you rather throw up bile?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

          "What's… bile?"

          "It's the stuff that your stomach produces to digest the food in your stomach.  After your thrown up all the half-digested food, that's all you have left in there, so that's all that comes up.  It's green, and bad smelling, and it burns your throat like acid…

          "An' why's dat?" Jack asked, feeling like this was the exact opposite of what  he wanted to happen to him today.

          "Because it pretty much is acid," Ellie replied, shrugging.

          "Whaddaya got ta eat?"

-x-x-

          "How's he doin'?" Racetrack asked, appearing in the doorway around three or four.  Jack was asleep again, and Ellie had moved on to reading a book.

          "He's better..." Ellie replied slowly. "But he's still really tired, and he's got kind of a headache.  His temperature's come down a lot."

          "Hey, y'know, Ise was talkin' ta him yestaday, an' he said-"

          "Race, if he said anything about me, I don't want to know." Ellie shook her head. "You probably misinterpreted it, anyway.  That's what happens most of the time.  To me, at least."

          "Well… he only has good tings ta say 'bout ya."

          "Sure, Race, whatever… Just like you've liked me since I've been here?" Ellie rolled her eyes, and Racetrack looked down at his feet guiltily. "Wanna play blackjack?"

          "Nah."

          "Poker?"

          "Nope."

          "Castle?"

          "Yeah!  I'se haven't met anyone who's knows hows ta play dat in a long time!"

-x-x-

          **_The author would like to make a statement at this time_**_: (Stands up on soapbox, clears throat) Very mild fluff is ahead.  If that make you squeamish and squirm, do not read further.  That is all._

-x-x-

          When Jack woke up, the sun had set and the room was a mass of shadows.  There was something warm wrapped around his waist, and, when he looked over, Ellie was asleep beside him.  He carefully removed her arm from his waist, causing her to stir a little, and made his way into the bunkroom.  Everyone else was asleep, so he didn't have to deal with them feeling sorry for him because he had been sick.  It was a welcome relief.

          As Jack settled onto his bunk over Racetrack, he was amazed at the fact that Ellie would miss work for one day, just to take care of him when he was sick.  Although she did make more than he did, about nine dollars a week. [AN2]

          Still, it didn't make much sense.  Ellie was the kind of person to be the favorite aunt, and occasionally the strict mother, but she was never the caring mother-figure.  She cared about people, but she liked disciplining people more than staying with them when they were sick.

          "Have fun bein' babied taday, Cowboy?" Race asked suddenly.  Jack looked down to see the shorter boy's head sticking out the side of the bunk. "Gad, she nevah lef' da room da whole day!"

          "Shut up, Race," Jack growled, throwing his only pillow at Racetrack's face.  Unfortunately, Race ducked out of the way, and picked the pillow up from the ground.

          "Tanks foi da pillow, Jack."

**AN1**: Yep, now I'm quoting _Finding Nemo_… (shakes head) t'is a sad, yet funny, day.

**AN2**: This is based on the assumption that he makes seven dollars a week.  I calculated that by figuring that he sells one hundred papers a day, and seven hundred a week, and each paper in worth a penny, which means he earns seven dollars a week.  Also, if you compare what the money was worth then with what the money is worth now (a ratio of 1:75, judging on the fact that the average paper costs 75 cents now and 1 cent then) then, in our time, Jack would make about 525 dollars a week, and Ellie would make 675.  Ellie gets paid about $2.25 ($168.75) for each performance, and performs about four times a week, on average.  Okay, I'll stop being a math geek now.

**Author's Note of the Chapter**: I think my math geek monologue was pretty much enough for this chapter.  If you're confused, ask your math teacher.  Of course, my smart aleck friends have already challenged my genius.  Cable-paying fools.  I am, of course, kidding.  I'm probably wrong, anyway.  Correct me if I am.


	7. Chapter Seven: Shakespeare

**Chapter Seven: Shakespeare Couldn't Hold A Candle to This Moment**

No one spoke about what had happened the next day, or for a while, for that matter. Everyone remembered it, especially Jack, but no one seemed to want to ask questions that would bring up unwanted tension between people as close as Jack and Ellie.

Jack's birthday was quickly approaching; December 14th. Everyone was slightly, because they weren't quite sure what to do for his eighteenth birthday. Throwing a surprise party had been suggested, but, for some reason, they decided they needed something a little more creative.

And so they settled on ice skating.

The plan was this: get everyone over to the ice skating rink while Jack was gone, then Ellie would have to find some way to coax him there, without him realizing what they were doing. It seemed like a simple plan in theory, but, when one knows Jack, one knows that nothing involving him is simple.

"I can't believe he was born so close to Christmas!" Ellie grumbled, staring into one of the shop windows. She was shopping for gifts with Camden. "Now I have to get the perfect birthday and Christmas present at the same time!"

"The fact that you love him probably doesn't help very much, does it?" Camden asked, not even slightly cringing under Ellie's Death Glare.

"No, not really, but thank you for reminding me!" The brunette shook her head. "I don't to get him something that says 'I have feelings for you' right off the bat, but I want to get him something that subtly tells him I care really deeply about him…"

"And you're shopping for a guy? Good luck, dear." Camden bit her lip and glanced into another shop window. "Well, obviously, clothes are out of the question…"

"Yeah."

"How about a watch? A really pretty one on a chain?" The redhead stopped at the window of a watch maker. She eyed the gold watch displayed on a piece of black velvet. "Race might like a watch…"

Ellie smirked. "Oh, who's the one with the feelings now?" she teased. "I don't understand how you can see Racetrack in that light. I mean, c'mon, the guy's half an inch taller than you, and he always teases you about the way you walk!"

"For one thing, he's three-fourths of an inch taller than me-" Camden glared at her friend. "-And he only made fun of me that one time when I sprained my ankle! Even I joked about how I walked!"

"Okay…" Ellie rolled her eyes. "How about I make him something… nah, arts and crafts aren't really my thing, and my sewing looks like some housewife had too much gin…" Camden laughed at the joke, and Ellie sighed dramatically. "What am I going to do, Cam?"

"How about a book?" Ellie stopped so suddenly, that at first Camden didn't realize it.

"That's a great idea!" Ellie, who didn't seem entirely on Earth, stated. "I'll… I'll get him Shakespeare! He always looks lost when I talk about A Midsummer Night's Dream, anyway. And then, maybe, he'll realize how I feel about him!" She hugged her friend. "Cam, you're a genius!" Her face fell. "Wait… what if he does feel the same way?"

Camden stared at the girl in front of her. Ellie had never looked so scared or venerable since the redhead had known her. All she wanted to do was tell her that, yes, Jack felt the same way, but, unfortunately, no one really knew. The signs were all there, and he'd practically told Racetrack that day before he got sick… but it wasn't set in stone.

Camden, being a girl, and therefore much more experienced in these matters, pretty much had him figured out, though. It was just a matter of time before they found out about the other one. Camden thought it would be fun to see how this all panned out, and if her friend's heart got broken, then she would just have to deal with the guilt…

And beat the living daylights out of Cowboy.

-x-x-

"Hey Cowboy!" Ellie exclaimed, running to catch up with Jack. She grabbed a paper out of his hands and began intently reading the stories. "What's new, newsie?" she giggled. The doubtful glance Jack sent in her direction made her smirk. "Medda taught me that one."

"Yeah, I kinda guessed dat," Jack rolled his eyes and continued walking down the street, barely looking at her.

"Hey, what's up with you?" Ellie asked, looking concerned. "You're being all quiet, and pensive, and… un-Jack-like. Are you actually thinking for once? Gasp!" She gave him a look of mock surprise.

"Shut up, Mouth," Jack muttered, handing a paper to a tall, elderly gentleman. Ellie knew he was serious, and it only confused her more. Jack never said "Shut up, Mouth," and actually meant it.

"Okay, now I know something's wrong," Ellie stated. There was no reply from Jack; he just continued walking down the sidewalk and selling papers. He didn't even look at her, and his expression was an unhappy one. "What's wrong, Jack?" When he didn't answer, she grabbed his arm and dragged him into a nearby alley.

"Hey! What's ya problem?" Jack shouted, acting as if he hadn't heard a single word she'd said.

"What's your problem, moron? You've barely said two words to me this morning! Actually, you've said three; shut, up, and Mouth. Now, maybe it's me, you're normally much more talkative. Jack, I can tell when something's wrong. Tell me."

"Nutin's wrong! Leave me alone!" Jack exclaimed, brushing angrily past the short brunette. Ellie was stunned. He had never yelled at her like that. At least, not without good reason. And, until he spoke to her, he didn't have a good reason.

She ran up to him and grabbed his arm, but he didn't stop walking. "Jack, maybe something's wrong with you, and maybe you don't want to talk to me about it. I can accept that. Just don't go all freaky on me and get mad at me for no reason, okay?"

He stopped and turned to her, his brow a thunderhead of emotions. Finally, he calmed down, and his expression softened. "Sorry, Ells. I didn' mean ta get mad at ya like dat."

Ellie nodded understandingly. "It's okay. I know what it feels like to become a different person for three or four days." He looked confused. "Womanly body functions," she explained in a low voice. Jack still didn't understand, but he didn't press any further. Some things were better left unexplained.

"It's jus'… it's me birthday an' all comin' up, an'… I jus' kinda wish my Ma was heah."

Ellie realized that, for all the time she spent not talking about her family, Jack spoke about his even less. In fact, she had never known anything about his family, aside from the fact that they were Irish.

"Is she…?" Ellie didn't want to say the word out loud.

"She died, Ellie. She died when I'se was seven." He frowned, and she felt very sorry for him.

Ellie had the overwhelming urge to throw her arms around Jack and shout "It's okay, Jack, I'm here for you!" but she wanted to let him finish his story, and, besides, that would attract too much unwanted attention.

"She died da day befoah my birthday. I nevah really liked birthdays aftah dat." Jack finished with a sigh. He felt a sympathetic arm wrap around his waist, and looked down to see Ellie hugging him gently.

"It's okay, Jack," she whispered, looking up at him with bright eyes. It took him a moment to realize that her eyes were bright with tears. "I'm here for you."

Jack thought this seemed like a very poetic moment in the relationship of the two of them, but then he reformed his thought: Shakespeare couldn't hold a candle to this moment.

**Author's Note of the Chapter:** Since my _last_ author's note got deleted last time, I'll make this quick: blah, blah, not much to say, blah, blah, they deleted LegallyRed's story, blah, blah, go on strike! Blah, blah, blah, soak 'em, fer Kathy!


	8. It's A TRAN!

**Totally Random Author's Note Between Chapters**

Guess what, guys? I saw _The Village_ today. Is that why I'm excited? No, not really. Wanna know why I'm excited?

I saw the Batman trailer!

And at first I saw Christian, and went, "Oh my God, is this who I think it is?" but I wasn't really sure, because his face was all dirty, and stuff. But then they showed this different shot (suddenly, and for, like, three seconds) and his face was all clean and prettiful, and I screamed! Right in the middle of the theater! I bit down on my hat and shouted to my friend Charlene "Look! It's Christian!" and she just kind of stared at me like I was mental (she's never seen _Newsies_). Which I am.

But I leaned over to Katie and went "Katie! It's Christian! Christian Bale! Jack! It's Jack! From _Newsies_!" She just gave me this "That's great, now shut up" look. I started shouting to all my friends (there were about fifteen of us; we took up and entire row) "Guys! It's Jack! Jack! It's Christian Bale! The dude from _Newsies_!" But I had to shut up, because the people sitting in back of us started making these annoyed sounds.

It looks so good! I'm so happy. And hyper.

Hugs and kisses,

Eileen

**PS** – I won't be putting the next chapter (Jack's birthday) up until August 17th… that's my birthday. I think it's fitting. Live with it.


	9. Chapter Eight: He's Legal, Girls!

**Chapter Eight: He's Legal, Girls!**

One week later, and just five days before Christmas, Ellie awoke with a sense of happiness she only felt around certain people – mainly Camden and Jack. She wondered, for a moment, why she felt so good. And then it hit her.

It was Jack's birthday.

She happily scurried (or fell, depending on how you would like to phrase it) out of bed, and didn't even bother to change, or throw on her robe, before rushing down the hall and into the bunkroom.

Ignoring sleepy mumbles from the boys who were asleep, and angry shouts from those who managed to drag themselves out of bed any earlier then they needed to be, Ellie ran up to Jack's bed, narrowly missing Racetrack as she used his mattress to push herself onto Jack's legs.

"Hey, Jackie." The brunette grinned at the bleary-eyed young man, sitting Indian-style at the foot of his bed.

"Is dere a reason you'd be wakin' me up early taday?" Jack asked, trying to rub the sleep from his eyes.

"Jack…" Ellie rolled her eyes. "It's your birthday, moron! You're eighteen! You're legal, honey!"

"Oh, yeah…" He slipped back down in bed. "Den let me sleep late."

"I just can't let you do that, Jack." Ellie shook her head and slapped him lightly on both cheeks repeatedly. "Jackie… Judgment Day has come… news flash: you're not going with us…" She sighed and sat back at the end of the bed when he swatted her away. "Hey, Race?" She leaned over the side of the bed.

"Yeah?" the Italian boy blinked up at her wearily.

"How do I wake Jack up?"

Racetrack blinked a couple of times, and suddenly realized that Ellie was sitting on Jack's bed. _With Jack in it_… Had she been there all night?

"Race…" Ellie called in a high, fairy-like voice. "How do I wake up the lord of the manor?"

"Grab his ear…" Race murmured, slipping back under the covers and deciding not to think about what he had just seen. It caused too much mental stress, and he needed his brain for the next, oh… sixty years, or so.

"That's it?" she asked no one in particular, staring at the young man in front of her. He looked so peaceful, and she could just sit and stare at his cute face forever. She was feeling a little tired herself…

She hiccupped quietly, breaking herself out of her reverie. She decided to leave him alone for a while, but she didn't feel like doing anything, including getting off the bed. Medda _had_ given her the day off, after all, so she could spend the day with Jack… why not stick with him as much as possible? Not like he would care much, anyway.

So she settled down on the other end of the bed, pulling her body into the smallest form possible, and slowly drifted off to sleep again…

-x-x-

Jack woke up to find the sleeping form of a young, barely-dressed girl in his bed. For a moment, he forgot who she was and why she was there, which seemed to happen often in the morning. He briefly wondered if she had snuck in during the night. Then it all came back suddenly.

That led to the question of why she was in his bed. Obviously by choice, and she looked very tired, but he didn't remember her ever getting into bed with him the night before… Wait! Had they _done_ something last night that he didn't remember?

"You finally decided to wake up…" Ellie glanced at him groggily and sat up. "And yet you _still_ look dazed and confused. That expression seems to have a tendency to show up on your face…" She sighed and shrugged with one shoulder. "Oh well."

Oh, yes. He remembered now. She had tried to wake him up earlier this morning, but he had ignored her. He looked around, and was glad to see that it was not so late that everyone had left. Much unlike the day he had been sick, when the sun had been shining brightly (signifying that it was late in the day) and no one had been left.

"So how does it feel to be eighteen?" Ellie asked, radiating the aura of a professional newspaper reporter doing the next of her masses of interviews. "Any different?"

"Not much…" Jack grinned sheepishly, making Ellie's insides do several aerobatic maneuvers she would never have been able to master with the rest of her body. "Can I'se get dressed now?"

"Oh, yeah, sure…" Ellie slid off the bed in a very unladylike manner. She enjoyed the feeling of the cold wooden floorboards under her feet and the cold air surrounding her as she placidly walked down the hall into her room. "Now, what should I wear?" she asked no one in particular.

Deciding on one of her nicest dresses – a pure miracle, for her, since she rarely ever wore dresses for more than a few hours at a time – she slipped it on. She paused for a moment to stare at her worn, comfortable boots, and the nicer, more proper girl's shoes.

"Eh, who cares?"

She grabbed the boots off of the floor and pulled them on quickly, only stopping to check herself in the mirror one last time.

"Okay, you're good…" She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "It's just one day with him… _alone_. You'll be fine. Just _try_ not to give away the surprise…" She smoothed the front of her dress as Jack appeared in her doorway.

"Is dere a reason ya decided ta wear a dress taday, Ellie?" he asked, trying to cover up his delight at how good she looked in a dress with an amused-looking smirk. It must have worked, because she blushed – something she didn't do very often – and a shy smile spread over her face.

"It's a special occasion, Jack!" the girl exclaimed, giving him a small, one-armed (very non-forward-feeling) hug. "You turning eighteen is a special occasion for me, whether you like it or not." She thought she noticed a pinkish tint creep into his cheeks.

"Am I goin' ta work taday?" he asked, staring at her.

Ellie rolled her eyes. "What am I now, your day planner? I don't make your decisions for you, I just pressure you to make the decisions I _want_ you to make." She grinned. "There _is_ a difference, you know." She gave him a matter-of-fact look as they descended the stairs together.

"Do ya _want_ me ta go ta woik?"

Ellie slipped slightly on the last step, which Jack, luckily, didn't seem to catch the slight trip. Kloppman, on the other hand, who had been watching the entire scene unfold (actually, he had been watching the scene unfold for three months, but we're talking short-term, here) did notice. He managed to hide his grin by turning around to sweep some more behind his desk.

"Wh-what do you mean, Jack?" the brunette asked jerkily, shifting uncomfortably and fiddling with the hem of her sleeve. "I want you to do whatever you want to do; it's _your_ birthday."

"But dat's not what I asked ya," he returned, giving her a look that said "It's fun to make you feel uncomfortable". "I asked ya if _youse_ wanted me ta go ta woik."

"Well, um, er… no." Two circles of crimson erupted of her cheeks, like bright red fireworks bursting on a dark night. "I was kind of hoping that, well… _I_ could spend the day with you."

"'Course ya did!" Jack exclaimed brightly, grinning. "An' I can' tink of a bettah way at spend my birthday den witcha, Mouth."

"Oh, Jack, you're too kind," Ellie replied dramatically. "Please, no applause, just money…" She grinned. "That's what I always say after a performance. Medda seems to think I'm weird because I do that." She pulled on a mock look of curiosity. "Can't imagine why she'd think _I'm_ odd…"

"I can," Jack stated, giving her a cheeky grin as she glared at him with mock anger.

-x-x-

"Que hora es?"

"Huh?" Jack asked, staring at Ellie like she was speaking gibberish.

"Que hora es?" she asked again, this time slower and more clearly. When she only received more confused looks from Jack, she rolled her eyes exasperatedly. "It's Spanish! What time is it?"

"Oh, uh…" He glance dup at the clock tower. "Six-tirty." Jack looked back at her.

"Ah. Son las seis y media."

"Why? Ya got a hot date tanight, er somethin'?"

"Something akin to a hot date," Ellie replied cryptically, grabbing his wrist and setting off for the lodging house. "And you're coming with me. I just have to pick something up, and then we can go."

"Oh, yay. I'se _so_ happy."

-x-x-

"Bring your coat. We're going to be outside!"

"Why ya bein' so bossy taday, Mouth?" Jack asked, pulling on his coat as she opened her mouth to reply. "More bossy dan usual?"

"Because we really need to get out of here!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm and nearly tearing it off in her attempt to herd her one-man flock out the door.

"You're slower than an old lady on Sunday, you know that?" she asked, when they were finally out on the street. The street lamps were being lit, casting a slightly romantic glow on everything.

"Are ya gonna tell me where we's goin' _now_?' he asked impatiently, taking one step for every two of her fast-paced strides.

"Nope." She shook her head and grinned. "Don't you just _hate_ me when I do that?"

"I hate ya all da time, Mouth. Ya just talk so much dat ya never notice." Jack laughed, but, when he realized Ellie looked hurt after the joke, he stopped. "Eh, ya know I don' hate ya, Ells. I love ya!" he exclaimed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her towards him.

They continued along their trip in this manner. A few people, older women, mostly, Ellie noticed, pointed and muttered to their friends, "Oh, they make such a sweet couple, don't they?" She got the impression that Jack didn't hear them, but she knew her cheeks were hot enough to fry an egg (or two) by the time they arrived at the skating rink.

Jack, of course, didn't recognize where they were, because he had never come by this area before, and the lights were so dim that it was hard to see what lay beyond the gap between the two high wooden walls, which had been erected to close in the rink.

"Surprise!"

Jack jumped slightly as they crowd in front of him cheered, and Ellie suddenly became aware that he still had his arm around her shoulders. She pulled away quickly, at which Jack frowned, but said nothing. Instead, he pulled on a grin and laughed.

"Tanks, guys," he thanked them happily, shaking hands everywhere. After they had been separated by a wall of at least four people, Camden rushed up to Ellie.

"What was that all about?" the redhead asked, staring at her. "Did you guys get together right before you came, or something?"

"Wha… oh. Right." Ellie shook her head. "No, we didn't." She shook her head. "He was just being funny."

"Well, did you-?"

Camden was cut off by Jack approaching them.

"I heah most a dis was yer idea, Ells," he stated, smiling down at her. "Is dat true?"

If Ellie's cheeks had been any darker, they would have been black.

"Well… yeah, pretty much." She stared down at the snow.

"Are ya gonna teach me how ta skate, den?" Jack asked, holding up two pairs of skates. Ellie realized one was in her size.

"Oh, yeah!" she exclaimed, grabbing her pair and slipping them on. She tested her feet on the ice and slipped out precariously, as she had not been ice skating for a year, at least. After gliding around for a few seconds, she turned to Jack, who was having trouble with his lace.

"Here…" She skated off the rink and knelt down, deftly tying his laces. "There." She grinned up at him for a few seconds, before being brought sharply back to earth by Camden shouting at her.

"Look, Ells! I skated for a whole _minute_ without falling!" the redhead exclaimed, and, in that second, fell to the ice with a slight _hiss_ from her skates. Ellie had the distinct feeling that her friend had only done this to ruin her moment with Jack, and not to show off her talent.

"Moron…" Ellie rolled her eyes and was helped to her feet by Jack. "Ready?"

"Uh…." Jack was eyeing the ice warily. "Maybe we's should get somethin' ta eat first…"

"Don't be a pansy, Jack!" Ellie cried, grabbing his hand and dragging him onto the ice. He proceeded to slip immediately, and grabbed Ellie around the waist. found himself staring at something he'd never really looked at very closely: her backside.

"Um… could you stop staring at my-?" She cleared her throat loudly. "Please?" He stood up, at she held both his hand and faced him. "I'm not very good at skating backwards, so you'll have use me as leverage and push me." He was staring at her with a somewhat vacant expression on his face. "_Okay_, Jack?" she asked loudly.

"What?… Oh, yeah. Sure."

-x-x-

Although Jack had started out _very_ poorly, he progressed well in an hour. He even got to the point where he could skate forward on his own.

He had also opened his presents, all of which he had been very happy – mostly money, as he was very hard to shop for. That was mainly because the only three things he ever showed remote interest for were money, Santa Fe, and Ellie. And you could hardly buy the two latter.

Suddenly, he grabbed Ellie by the waist and pushed her gently forward. Racetrack and Camden, who had been skating beside them and were officially "an item", both _awww-_ed at the same time, making both Jack and Ellie throw glares at their friends.

Jack wrapped his arms around her waist and continued skating.

"Dis is my favorite boithday evah," he whispered, sending shivers down her spine. They glided along in silence for a while, listening to the hiss of skates on the ice, and the happy chatter of people skating around them, until they slowed down, and Ellie turned to Jack.

"Do you want to open your present now?" she asked quietly.

"I already opened all my presents," Jack replied blankly, staring at her like she was insane.

"Not from me," she replied, shaking her head.

Camden watched from the corner of her eye as the two untied their skates. "Hey, Race…" She nudged him in the side. "What's up with those two?" They watched as Ellie led Jack down the path that circled the frozen pond. "Wanna go?" Camden grinned mischievously, grabbed Racetrack's hand, and, without waiting for his reply, began dragging him down the path at a safe distance.

"Why is we's doin' dis?" Racetrack asked, eyeing the two teenagers walking slowly in front of them.

"Because we're going to spy on them!" Camden hissed, slowing down slightly, so that it didn't _look_ like they were following them. They got to a point, halfway around the pond, where the path disappeared into a little clearing, surrounded by tall trees. As Ellie glanced to both sides, Camden quickly pulled Racetrack to her and pretended to kiss him, all the while glancing in Ellie's direction.

When the two disappeared into the clearing, Camden pulled Racetrack forward, and they found a place in the trees where the branches weren't as thick, and looked through. There were circular benches going around the entire circumference of the clearing, except where the path led in and out. Ellie was sitting on a bench next to Jack, looking extremely uncomfortable, but pleased with herself, to be where she was.

"So whaddya get me foi my boithday?" Jack asked eagerly. His back was to them, so they couldn't see his face, but Ellie's was illuminated in the moonlight; eager and happy, but shining slightly from the sweat of getting hot from skating, and being bundled up.

"This…" The brunette produced a small, wrapped package from her coat. Camden furrowed her eyebrows; it was smaller than a book. Much smaller. She briefly wondered _why_ Ellie hadn't done what she said she would, but Racetrack interrupted her train of thought.

"What's dat?" he asked quietly, staring at the package.

"His present," Camden explained exasperatedly. "Now shut up! They're gonna hear us!"

Jack unwrapped it and opened the box; something small and iridescent shone in the moonlight. Camden strained her neck to see what it was, but all she could see was its round outline.

"It was my grandfather's watch," Camden heard Ellie explain. "He gave it to me, when I took care of him when he was sick." The girl smiled sadly. "And you took care of me, so I'm giving it to you."

"But, Ellie, didn' your grandfathah…?"

"Yeah, he died, Jack, I know," Ellie cut in a little more frostily than she had meant to. "But you were _such_ a big help for me when I got here, getting me a place to stay, and a job, and just being a really great friend… I really want you to have it."

Jack held it up to the moonlight. Camden had only seen the pocket watch once, but immediately recognized it. Ellie had shown her grandfather's watch to her before, and it was very pretty. The casing was made of real gold, with a crystal face plate, and the hands gleamed silver. When Jack spoke again, it sounded like he was near tears.

"Ellie, I don' know how ta thank ya," he stated slowly, leaning forward.

"Kiss her…" Camden hissed, pushing more branches aside for a better view of two. Racetrack groan slightly beside her from the amount of force she was putting into squeezing his hand.

Jack leaned slowly closer and closer, and Camden continued to as well… she had a good view now, she could see Ellie's eyes clearly; they were large and round and hopeful…

With a slight shriek, she tumbled forward into the circle of trees. She had held on so hard to Racetrack's hand that he fell with her, landing on top of his girlfriend heavily.

Jack and Ellie turned their heads in the direction the commotion was coming from, and, seeing their two friends lying on the snowy ground, stood up quickly and tried to maintain as much distance from one another without looking like they were.

"Heya, guys…" Racetrack tried to grin happily as he pulled himself to his feet. "How's it goin'?"

Camden frowned beside him. "Ellie, I can explain…"

All eyes turned to Ellie. Yet again, she had the look that suggested she was going to murder the entire population of Manhattan, given the chance, but there was something more to it, this time. Fallen hope.

"No, you can't." Without another word, she turned quickly and stomped out of the courtyard, stopping only once to pull her foot out of a particularly frozen snowdrift.

-x-x-

"Ellie, c'mon, we need to talk," Camden exclaimed, standing outside her friend's door and banging on it loudly.

"I don't want to talk to you!" Ellie shouted from somewhere behind the door. It was evident that she had been crying since she left the skating rink nearly an hour ago. Camden had followed her back to the Lodging House and spent the larger part of that hour trying to talk to her. Camden sighed as the rest of the newsies appeared at the top of the stairs and rushed into the bank room. Racetrack paused to giver her a big hug and tell her it would be alright, and then he was gone, too. Only Jack remained at the opposite end of the hall. She had been wondering when he'd get there.****

"Why don' I try?" he asked, pushing Camden out of the way. She took this as a sign to get out of there and raced down the stairs, barreling past Kloppman into the frosty December air.

"Ellie…" Jack called, knocking quietly on her door. "Ellie, why don't you come out here?"

"I don't want to talk to you, either!" she yelled. "Why do you always have to ruin my life! Can't you just leave me alone and let me live a life without the stresses of having to deal with guys who don't understand how I feel!"

Jack hesitated. What was that supposed to mean? He understood how she felt about him, she had told him on the bench… so why was she talking like this? It was frustrating!

"What's dat supposed ta mean?" he exclaimed. "Ya not makin' any sense!"

"Well, I wouldn't, to you, now would I?" she retorted. "Go away!"

"Look, I didn' _have_ ta do all dat stuff foi ya, I don' get why ya actin' like dis!" he shouted, feeling the anger rise in him. "Ya not bein' da nicest poison righ' now, ya know dat?"

"Go shove it!" Ellie exclaimed, but she immediately regretted it; she should be nice to him on his birthday.

"Yeah? Well, so's yer old lady!" And he felt sorry for saying that right away; he didn't know whether her mother was even alive. There was silence, and he guessed he had touched a nerve. Kloppman appeared at the end of the hall.

"What's all this shoutin' for?" he asked, striding over to Jack.

Jack rolled his eyes and slammed his fist down on the door one last time. "Ellie's mad. I can' really tell _why_, all I'se know's dat she's mad."

"Why don't you let me talk to her?" Kloppman asked, producing a set of keys from his pocket and knocking quietly on her door. When no answer came, he unlocked the door and stepped in, closing the door so Jack couldn't spy on them.

Ellie was sitting on her bed, head buried in her pillow, sobbing quietly.

"Hey, General," she greeted the old man quietly, trying to give him a smile.

"Ellie, why are you so mad at Jack?" he asked, sitting down next to her on the bed.

"I'm not really mad at Jack, I'm more mad at Camden, and frustrated…" She sighed.

"About what?"

"Well, stuff happened tonight, stuff Camden did, that ruined my plans…"

"Why don't you tell me what happened at the skating rink?"

The girl looked up a him appreciatively and proceeded to tell him the entire story, about how she had gotten Jack the perfect present, and found that nice little hidden spot. She even told him how she felt about Jack, which felt good, after keeping it pent up for months, and not really having anyone to tell but Camden. It was nice to admit this kind of thing to an adult without being judged.

"Well, it sounds to me like you might be trying _too hard_… you're constantly getting yourself into situations where this kind of thing can happen, and you do it on purpose." He smiled as Ellie began to blush. "Why don't you just _let it happen_? If it's supposed to, it will."

Suddenly, Ellie leaned forward and hugged the old man. He was shocked at first, but quickly recovered and patted her on the back. He got up and began to open he door.

"Thanks, General." She grinned appreciatively and saluted him. "I will not forget this conversation, sir." Kloppman rolled his eyes and exited the room, only to find Jack sitting across the hall, resting his head in his hands. When he heard the door close, he scrambled to his feet.

"Well? What did she say?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"I think I straightened her out…" Kloppman grinned at him secretively and strolled down the hallway. "It sure feels good to know I still got it…"

**Original (August 22nd) Author's Note of the Chapter:** Yeah, I know, it's, like, a week later then I said it would be… but I have a good reason! Did you hear about that hurricane in Florida? Yeah, the eye of the storm went right through the town I live in. We didn't get our power until the 16th of August (the day before my birthday), and, as I write this (August 22nd, 4:22 PM), we still don't have Internet on my computer. But hopefully my dad can fix it by tonight (he working at it right now) so I'll have it up by tonight. I hope. BTW: Quieren espanol?

**Redone (August 23rd) Author's Note of the Chapter:** Yeah, that's right, it's a day _later_… kill me now! My dad got the router last night and finished at, like midnight, but we're back in business! Yayness! Count on lots more being updated periodically. 


	10. Chapter Nine: I Don't Believe You

**Chapter Nine: I Don't Believe You**

Christmas came and went, and nothing very exciting happened. Spring's warm air finally started to melt the ice and snow on the ground, and everyone began spending much more time outside.

"Hey, Ellie, catch!"

Ellie turned her head just in time to see a ball sailing towards her, and was hit square in the forehead with it. More out of shock than anything else, she fell over backwards and landed on her back. Her friend, Claire, rushed over to her side.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to throw the ball when you weren't looking, I threw before I really looked at you…" Claire frowned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I think so," Ellie replied, watching the clouds as they passed overhead. She fell into silence.

"Do you… want to get up?" Claire asked tentatively.

"No… I'm good." She tilted her head and stared at the cloud directly above her. Claire glanced up in the direct she was looking.

"Are you _sure_ you're okay?" Claire raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I'm good. But you gotta look at this cloud! It looks like a dead squirrel!" Out of pure curiosity, Claire flopped down on the ground beside her friend and stared into the sky as we.

"Wow… you're right, it does!" Claire grinned. "Cool." They spent the next half-hour in the parking staring at clouds, until two shadows covered them.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Ellie asked, staring into the faces of David and Jack. She tried to conceal her giggle. "Get it, what's up, 'cause you guys are _up_ to us?" The two girls burst into fits of giggles in unison.

"Ellie, you're so silly," Claire stated, patting her friend's head affectionately.

"Thank you, m'dear."

"You're welcome, m'lady."

The girls continued to giggle insanely, until David grabbed Claire, Jack grabbed Ellie, and they hoisted them to their feet.

"I think this fresh air's goin' to your heads," David observed. "they say it's good for the mind, but when it comes to you two…"

Ellie looked surprised. "I have a mind? Have you found it?"

"No… why?"

"Because I lost it a while ago and I can't find it…" She looked over at the trees as if searching for something. "Nope, not there…" She turned to the road. "Nuh-uh…" She looked down at her feet. "Nothin'."

"I think I'm confused…" Claire muttered, checking her own pulse. "No, wait… maybe I'm not." Ellie snorted and doubled up with laughter. Jack and David exchanged dubious glances.

"Why don' we's have some lunch?" Jack asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Jack?" Ellie giggled, pointing to a spot over his eyes. "Have I ever told you that you have really _cool_ eyebrows?" Claire looked at her friend with a look of astonished realization and giggled harder.

"Yeah, he does!"

-x-x-

After the boys had escorted the girls into Tibby's they calmed down considerably, but not entirely. Ellie kept looking over in David's direction who was sitting next to Claire, and then at Claire herself, and burst out laughing. Claire, likewise, would look from Ellie, who was sitting next to Jack, to Jack, and double up in a fit of giggles.

"What's up with you two?" David asked finally, when Claire laughed so hard milk sprayed out her nose and she caught the majority of it in her hand.

"Spring has sprung!" Ellie announced loudly, throwing her arms up in the air so quickly that she almost hit Jack in the head. "Whoops, sorry, Jackie, didn't mean to do that!" She patted his head affectionately and leaned her head on his shoulder for a moment.

"Are ya shoi ya not jus' _drunk_?" Jack asked, staring at her as she lifted her head from his shoulder. "'Cause Race got drunk las' Christmas, an' he acted jus' like ya two are…"

Ellie shrugged. "I don't feel drunk…" She felt her own forehead and turned to her blonde friend. "Claire, do you feel drunk?"

"If this is what it feels like to be drunk, then I think we should do it more often!" Claire giggled. Even Ellie stared at her this time.

"But we didn't have anything to drink…" Ellie stated slowly, staring at her glass of water. "I think we've just been out in the air too long. It happens, sometimes." She nodded matter-of-factly.

-x-x-

As they strode out into the bright street, a loud commotion farther down the street caught their attention.

"What's that?" Claire asked, straining her ears to try and hear what was going on.

"I think it's coming from the bank…" David observed. Almost immediately after these words left his mouth, Jack set off in a sprint in the direction of the bank. Ellie rolled her eyes and glared at David.

"You _had_ to say that, didn't you?" she exclaimed, following quickly behind Jack. She wasn't nearly as fast as him, and even David overtook her quickly, eventually passing her. She and Claire got to the boys at the same time.

There was a quickly growing crowd gathered around the bank. The alarms were all going, and the police were quickly approaching.

"What happened?" Jack asked a nearby old lady.

"The bank has been robbed!" she cried, just as one of the second story windows broke and someone fell to the pavement below. They recovered quickly, however, and sprang to their feet, running as quickly as possible down the street.

"Holy-!" Ellie wasn't able to finish her exclamation because of David.

"Look, he's running away!" Jack, upon hearing this proclamation, chased after the burglar.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Ellie stated, rolling her eyes. "He's at it again!"

"Well let him, let him!" Claire shrieked.

"But _every day_!" [AN1] Ellie ran in the direction Jack had run.

By the time they got to Jack, though, there wasn't much help they could lend to him. He had the burglar pinned against the wall, both his arms behind his back.

"Betcha ain't thinkin' ya so smart now, are ya, tough guy?" Jack growled in his ear.

"Jack, don't goad the guy…" Ellie's command was half hearted, as she had just run more than she was used to, and Jack was being more impossible than usual today. The police rode up on their horses.

"Thank you for your assistance, young man," the police man thanked him, climbing off his horse and putting the man in handcuffs. "Would you please accompany us down to the station?"

"Uh…" Jack turned to run, but Ellie grabbed his shirt sleeve with practiced ease.

"They can't arrest you, moron, you haven't done anything wrong," she whispered exasperatedly, turning him back around.

"Shoi, fellahs, lead on…

-x-x-

Forty five minutes later, however, as they sat inside the police station, Ellie began to doubt her own logic. No one had spoken to them since they had arrived, aside from the police officer who had told them to sit in the waiting area until someone came and spoke to them. They had been waiting nearly the entire forty five minutes.

"You don't think they can arrest us for obstruction of justice, do you?" she asked nervously, staring at the clock on the wall. "I mean, _we_-" She gestured to herself, Claire, and David. "Didn't do anything. You can take all the, uh… _credit_ for it, Jackie."

"Shut up!" Jack muttered, turning to her. "Ya ain't helpin' the situation much, ya know dat?"

"Sor-ry…" Ellie sulked as a tall police man walked up to them.

"Are you the kid who caught that burglar?" he asked, staring down at Jack.

"It was all him!" Claire stated, a little more loudly than needed and pointing directly at Jack.

"Well, on behalf of the New York Police Department, I'd like to thank you, and present you with this money reward." He handed Jack an envelope thick and heavy envelope. "We've been trying to catch that man for a month; he's robbed five major banks. Thank you, son."

"Well, we helped a little bit!" Claire exclaimed, realizing that they were losing their chance to get money.

"It was all Jack," David stated, keeping Claire in her seat by pressing down, hard, on the shoulder closest to him.

-x-x-

"Wow! Free money!" Claire watched in awe as Jack counted through his money as they exited the police station. "That's a lot of money. There must be twenty bucks in there!"

"Yeah…" Jack grinned dreamily and stared at it. "Yeah, there is." Claire continued to stare at the money with round, shining eyes, until Ellie nudged her.

"Why don't you stare at David, or something?" the brunette suggested sarcastically. For the rest of the walk home, Claire kept quiet and didn't stare at anything, besides the sidewalk.

"This is my stop," Claire stated as they approached a small apartment building. "Bye, guys." She eyed David for a moment, and then turned her head slightly to stared pointedly at Ellie. She was suddenly afraid of being killed by fire beams coming out of Claire's eyes.

Ellie put on her best innocent (but still slightly frightened-looking) smile. "Hey, Jack, why don't we walk ahead? I think I… saw something down there," she finished lamely, grabbing his shirt sleeve and dragging him down the street. "We'll see you later, David!"

"What are we goin' ta look at?" Jack asked eagerly.

"Nothing," Ellie replied in an undertone, and paused until they had walked out of David's hearing range. "Claire just made me promise to find some way for her to be alone with David. This is just me being a good friend."

"An' what a good friend ya are," Jack replied, grinning at her.

"You're making fun of me!" she exclaimed, staring at him.

"No, I'm not." His smile was so innocent that there was no way it could have been real.

"Yes, you are!" she stated, nudging him in the side. The mock fight ended and they walked along in silence for a little while. "What are you gonna do with your cash moneys?" she asked finally. "Buy me something purdy?" She grinned.

But Jack only shrugged and began to count the money again. "I dunno… I guess I'll have ta think abou' it."

-x-x-

Jack lay on the roof of the lodging house that night, watching as the stars slowly crept in and filled up the sky. His reward money had brought up the old plan of going to Santa Fe. There was definitely enough money to get him there, and some to start off with.

"_So that's what they call a family,  
Mother, daughter, father, son.  
Guess that everything you heard about is true.  
So you ain't got any family.  
Well, who said you needed one?  
Ain't ya glad nobody's waiting up for you? When I dream, on my own,  
I'm alone, but I ain't lonely.  
For a dreamer night's the only time of day.  
When the city's finally sleeping,  
All my thoughts begin to stray.  
And I'm on the train that's bound for Santa Fe.  
And I'm free, like the wind,  
Like I'm gonna live forever.  
It's a feeling time can never take away.  
All I need's a few more dollars,  
And I'm outta here to stay!  
Dreams come true, yes, they do  
In Santa Fe...___

_Santa Fe, are you there?  
Do you swear you won't forget me?  
If I found you would you let me come and stay?  
I ain't gettin' any younger, and before my dying day,  
I want space, not just air,  
Let 'em laugh in my face, I don't care.  
Save a place, I'll be there. So that's what they call a family.  
Ain't ya glad you ain't that way?  
Ain't ya glad you got a dream called Santa Fe?_"

He didn't notice the figure standing in the small doorway leading up to the roof, though, because when she spoke, he hit several body parts in his effort to turn around.

"I don't believe you," Ellie stated plainly.

"Ellie?" Jack squinted in the pale light that came from the staircase leading up to the roof. "What are ya doin' up heah?"

"One wonders, when one hears someone talking to themselves and singing on the roof…" Ellie replied dreamily, leaning her head against the doorframe and staring up at the sky. It looked like someone had spilled a million shimmering diamonds on a piece of the darkest blue velvet possible.

"Ya hoid me singin'?" Jack asked uneasily, feeling as if he had missed a step on the stairs.

"Yes, I did." Ellie nodded gravely. "And I don't believe you."

"Why don't ya believe me?" Jack asked slowly, the smile quickly melting from his face. Ellie finally left her post at the doorway and sat down on the ground next to Jack.

"Because you're not alone, Jack," she declared softly, her eyes boring into his. "You and I… we're a lot alike. More so than you know, I think." She sighed and leaned back on her elbows, staring at the night sky once more. "We're both dreamers." She shrugged, as if it was one of those things that wasn't so great, but you couldn't really control it. "We always dream for something more; something more exciting, something more self-fulfilling… but the thing _you_ need to realize is that you need people who love you, just as much as you need your dreams to come true. You need a family, just as much, if not _more than_, Santa Fe."

"I ain't got a family, Ellie," Jack replied, his voice suddenly sharp and cold. Ellie glanced at him sharply. "My muddeh's dead, an' me fathah's in jail."

"I'm not talking about biological family," Ellie said, shaking her head.

"Den who's my family, Ellie? Huh? Tell me: who's my family?" he shouted, getting to his feet.

"Your friends!" Ellie retorted, getting to her feet as well. "David, and Racetrack, and Les, and Boots, and all of them… they're all your family, Jack! Family is the people who love you, and home is where your family is. Santa Fe isn't your home, Jack, New York is!"

"An' what abou' you?" he asked, lowering his voice. "Are you my family?"

"Yeah, I'm your family," she replied, running a hand through her sleep-tossed hair. "Of course I am." She suddenly became shy and looked down at her feet, which she had clumsily thrown her shoes onto in her hurried attempt to find out who was singing.

As she looked shyly into his eyes, he had the sudden, overwhelming urge to kiss her. But, before he could act upon this impulse, she turned and staggered down the stairs back to her room.

_It's never going to happen, Jack,_ a little voice at the back of his head said. _She's to difficult. Just get over her._

"I won' get ovah 'er," he growled under his breath, slowly descending the stairs back into the lodging house. Although he immediately climbed into bed, it was a long time before he finally managed to slip off to sleep…

**AN1:** In case you didn't recognize this quote, it's from Young Frankenstein. I need to do that, just in case someone goes psycho and decides to sue me.

**Author's Note of the Chapter:** Ah, it feels good to have Internet back… I really, really, _really_ need you guys to review this, because I'd let to get a general realistic view of how many people _actually_ read this story. Just to know.


	11. Chapter 10: Santa Fe Texas

Chapter Ten: Santa Fe… Texas… Coney Island! 

After three days and much deliberation, Jack had finally decided what to do with the money he had earned. All the newsies had talked it over, and decided that _this_ was the best plan. Now, all Jack had to do was tell Ellie.

They were at David's house when Jack finally found a moment. David's parents were out, so it was just Jack, David, Ellie, and Les in the apartment. Ellie, David, and Les were sitting at the kitchen table, Les cutting out colored pieces of paper, and Ellie attaching them to the sticks. David, being the ever productive human being that he was, was not helping in any way, shape, or form, and instead watched intently and constantly asked questions.

Jack sat on David's bed and watched the two chatting. Ellie patiently answered all of David's questions – unless they became too stupid, and then she yelled at him good-naturedly. Jack had seen her do the same with Claira.

The afternoon sun shone through the small windows on the west side of the apartment, bathing a reddish-orangish light over everything it touched. Ellie's brown hair seemed to glow with that light, reflecting it back in an even redder spectrum.

"So how many of these have you made before?" David asked, resting his head in his hand.

"How would I know?" Ellie asked, giving him an incredulous look. "I don't count 'em!"

"Sor-ry," David replied, glaring at her. Jack walked over to the table and stood beside Ellie's chair. She saw out of the corner of her eye as the two traded somber glances.

"Ellie?" Jack asked quietly.

"Yeah?" Ellie asked, looking up at him and giving him a happy smile. In reality, she was only trying to fight back the tears she knew were about to spill over. She knew what he was going to tell her: he was going to Santa Fe, and the conversation they'd had three days ago had meant nothing to him.

"Can I talk to ya?"

"Sure." Ellie set down the pinwheel that she was working on and stood. "David, if you want to, you can try to make some."

"Really? Cool!" He grinned and immediately began assembling the toy.

Jack took her gently by the elbow and led her behind one of the curtains that separated the beds from the rest of the apartment. He sat her down on David's bed and sat beside her. Ellie immediately hid her face in her hands, and her shoulders shook slightly.

"Ellie?" Jack asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Ellie? What's wrong? D'ya feel okay? Ellie?" He lifted her chin. Tears rolled down her cheeks in never-ending streams. "What're ya cryin' about?" He was beginning to think that she had done something she felt bad about.

Ellie stared down at the floor. "You're leaving," she murmured, looking up at him. "Aren't you? That's what you've decided to do with your money."

"Oh, no." He sighed in relief and smiled. "I'm not goin' ta Santa Fe, Ells."

"You… you're not?" she asked slowly, rubbing the tears from her face. "Where are you going then? Texas?"

"No!" He smiled and shook his head. "I'm goin' ta Coney Island!"

"You… are?" Ellie's eyes grew wide. "Oh…"

"Oh…" Jack pulled her into a hug and began rubbing her back gently. "I'se so sorry I made ya think I was leavin'."

"I'm sorry I cried," she murmured, burying her face in his shirt. "I was acting _really_ stupid."

"No ya weren't. I'd want ya ta act like that if I was leavin'. I'd cry if you left." They broke out of the embrace.

Ellie snorted. "That'd be quite a sight." She sighed. "So why would it matter if I knew you were going to Coney Island? Are you taking any of the newsies with you?"

"Well…" Jack took a deep breath. "I was wonderin' if you'd come with me… kinda… as my…" He cleared his throat. "_Date_?"

Ellie's face erupted into a grin. "Of course, Jack! I love you!"

A silence fell about the two. Jack's eyes grew to the size of roll plates, and Ellie's cheeks turned the deepest red anyone had ever seen them before.

"I mean… I'd love to." She grinned sheepishly and cleared her throat. "I really should get back to the pinwheels. David's probably mangling them."

"Yeah, an' I should prolly… go back ta sittin' down."

-x-x-

A few days later, at Coney Island… 

"Hey, have you seen Jack lately?" David asked, giving Claira an inquisitive look.

"Come to think of it… no, I haven't." The blonde screwed her face up in a thoughtful look. "Or Ellie, for that matter." She grinned. "But I think I might know where they are."

"Huh?" David cocked his eyebrows as Claira grabbed his hand and sprinted off in the direction of a small restaurant. Sure enough, Jack and Ellie were sitting at one of the tables outside, laughing happily and joking around with one another.

"Aw… they're so cute together…" Claira sighed, grinning up at David. "Aren't they?"

"Yeah… sure." His grin was actually more of a grimace. "Look, um, Claira, I was wondering, if you…"

"Hey, look! There's Racetrack!" Claira waved at the shorter boy. "Hey, Race!" She jogged off in his direction.

"So close…" David sighed. "_So close_…"

**Author's Note of the Chapter:** Well, after… over a year and a half of not working on this story at all, I've finally started updating again. It's not the best chapter, I know; in fact, it's pretty short and stupid. But the emotion's there. The life is there. And there's much better to come…

I think you all owe a big thanks to a certain Newsies Fan named Ellie.

That is… if you're reading this at all.


	12. This is Not a Drill

Author's Note 

Don't worry guys! It's just your friendly neighborhood author, giving you the LD (that's the low down) on what's going on with this story,

Okay, first of all, I hate to admit it, but this story is _officially_ put on hold. This story is going nowhere _fast_. My writing style and plot development has changed so much since I started the story that it needs a major overhaul.

Plus, I have about a million ideas for other stories. I just got into _The 4400_ (yay! Chad Faust and Patrick Flueger! The hottest cousins in the entire world!), and I'm constantly writing my _Supernatural_ and _Pirates of the Caribbean 2_ is coming out (Commie Norrie! I love stuffy British guys), so I'm furiously writing those. I'm also trying to write more of my stories before I post them, so that I don't figure out halfway through the story that I have _nothing_.

Don't worry, though! I have a new _Newsies_ story in talks (that's what my agent and I call it – at least, that's what I would call it if I _had_ an agent). It's great, involving Ohio and Christmas and a guy who looks suspiciously like Eddie Cahill (hmm… his name _may_ be Tom in the story). It promises to be very good and I hope it gets far, since I have a definite plan for it.

Summer promises to be a good time to get stuff writing. Plus, I'm being home schooled my senior year, so I'll have more time to write. Keep waiting and be patient, please! Keep an eye out for _When the Storm Clears_.

Your loving author,

Eileen


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